Rose of Time: Book 1
by Elizabeth.M.Kelli
Summary: This is the story of a 'new' senshi, who has both a lot more, and a lot less experience in fighting than all the others. In fact, Mami our new character is an all together strange person, if I do say so myself The first book of the series.
1. Note to Readers

Note to Any and All Readers:

The beginning of this story might annoy you. Especially if you, like me, are avid lovers of Sailor Moon. You may wonder how brilliant Ami is kept in the dark about such important things.

Well to tell the truth I hate explaining this to you. Because it does spoil some of the story, so if you like, read on without reading this. I will most definitely forgive you if you skip over this page entirely.

You see, in the first page of two I mention a strange throbbing, like being too close to a speaker, which is turned up much too loud, but without sound. This is the sense of an ancient evil, much older than Mettalia, and Beryl and them. Even older than the Sailor Wars (which were talked about only in the manga version of Sailor Moon Stars as far as I know). This evil creates a kind of time-space distortion. It is not normally very strong. In fact it's very easy to breach. The thing is the only people it affects are those _capable_ of sensing it. That does not mean they do sense it, only that they can. This evil has only a small area in which it can function this shield, which is why it never before noticed my poor magical girl junkie, as she watched episode after episode of the wonderful Sailor Moon anime (but who can blame her, it was pretty damn good).

The Original Sailors had been exposed to this their entire lives, they never noticed it. But when Mami arrives it's the first strange thing she notices about Tokyo, Japan. But she ignores it and gets used to it. Well until it senses her growing powers, and retaliates. Then all the scouts, and all three cats, not to mention the crows, notice the throbbing for the first time. But they can't find it again, because it ceases its attack quickly. It hadn't affected this new power.

Please enjoy,

Rose


	2. Chapter 1

Act I, Chapter 1:

What?!

I'm Megan. Which I'm sorry to say is about as cool as my name gets But I've convinced everyone at my new school to call me Mami. Which is my adaptation of my name in Japanese. Why I chose that form of my name of all the ones open to me? Well because I just moved to Japan, Tokyo if you want to be specific. Which is great because I now have an excuse for those classes in Japanese I convinced my dad to let me take.

My family moved here from Germany, which was our last home. My dad's in the US army, so I do a lot of moving. Which is actually pretty fun, well except for the fact that it sometimes takes eight month for stuff to get where it's going. Like everything we own, it hasn't made the trip here yet. I hope I'm not going to die from Sailor Moon deprivation.

I'm what you might call a Magical Girl junkie, as in I'm always watching it on YouTube. I have lots and lots of playlists full of Sailor Moon, dubbed into English, dubbed into German, and subbed with English subtitles. But I also have less well known things like Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, Wedding Peach, Tokyo Mew Mew, and Prėtear. I bet you haven't heard of any of those have you?

But all that is besides the point, which is I'm Mami, I'm American, I speak Japanese, and I live in Tokyo. That's all that's important to my story. Which I should tell you shouldn't I?

So it kind of started about the time we got to Tokyo, as in the moment the plane started to descend. I could feel these weird vibrations in the air. A bit like when someone plays their music too loud right next to you, but without the actual sound, just the thumping rhythm of it.

I didn't really think about it at the time. It wasn't that important, not when compared with the fact that my gum wasn't helping with the whole ears popping in descent thing, and I had a headache, and my knee hurt from being stationary for the last ten hours, during which I was up against a cold window watching featureless clouds because I couldn't fall asleep, even though it was obviously dark outside.

It was four in the morning (Tokyo time) when we landed. But I wasn't tired, so I got stuck carrying my purse, my backpack, my little brother's bag, my mom's purse, and my dad's laptop case. You might wonder how I managed all this crap, I'm really not sure to tell the truth because all the bags were pretty heavy, even the two purses. We were staying in a hotel connected to the airport so after we finished going through the long arduous line, we headed to pick up the rest of our luggage with two carts to fill with said luggage.

We each had two suitcases, and two carry-on bags. Plus we had to get our poor dog, who wasn't happy about the plane ride, as we could hear from a mile away. Poor Harry, my heart really goes out to him.

In case you're wondering our dog is a little over a year old, and he's a black lab and a red bone mix. He's really skinny and has these clear chocolaty eyes, which I'm incapable of saying no to. And my little brother named him Harry Potter. Yes I know naming him after a rather controversial fictional character? Yes my eight year old younger brother does have major issues.

I put Harry's leash on him and wrapped it around my hand a bunch of times, then I let him out of the travel cage he was stuck in. He was happy to get out, and I could tell why, that thing smelled really bad.

So all of us traipsed across the airport to the Marriott which was over on the other side of the airport. When we got there I went outside with Harry as my dad signed us in. We had a suite with a living room, kitchen, and two bedrooms. All in all it was better than some places we had stayed.

So we were in the hotel for about a month. And by that time we were all thoroughly sick of each other. I sketched my way through two and a half sketch books, and read my way through thirty or so books, it might have been more. I also ate my way through three canisters of sunflower kernels and three packs of cherry Twizzlers. But I only got on my dad's computer maybe for times total. Which really sucks, because I had e-mails to keep up with, and Magical Girl Anime to watch, and manga to read. But of course the obnoxious eight year old got precedence on the computer. How unfair is that?

It was right about then that my dad got tired of my whining and bought me a tablet. Which I loved. I had been begging for one for several moths, so now I didn't really need the desktop comp that was coming with our stuff, which was very annoyingly not here yet.

But also right around that time we got a house. It was a really nice big house too. It had a huge fenced in backyard, and it was three stories not counting the finished attic and basement. It had six bedrooms, a family room, a living room, a computer room, a kitchen, a dining room, a breakfast nook, five and a half bathrooms. All in all it was a really good house for my six person, two animal household.

Oh wait! I think I forgot to mention Nesquik! She's my little dwarf hamster who I bought when we were still in Germany. I t had taken a lot of work to let us take her with us on the plane. I had to leave her with my best friend Katja a lot, so I've missed her the last few months.

We painted my room blue and all my furniture white. Then I was given the silver paint I begged for and given artistic license with the walls of my room and bathroom. I painted silver curling vines swirling around on one wall, and white ones on the adjacent one. Then I painted the bathroom white and put silver and blue vines all through there. It looked really cool and the rooms tied in with each other. I really should stop watching HGTV before it's too late to get a life.

The first day of school wasn't too bad that's when I noticed _them_ I don't know why I noticed those girls, but they went to my new school, Juuban High School. One was blond with funny, kind of familiar pig tails, the other blond had a big red bow, that stirred my memory a bit too. The scariest part was the fact that the blonds were with a tall brunette with a ponytail, and a girl with short blue hair. That's when my curiosity overcame me they were way too much like the characters from Sailor Moon for my peace of mind.

"Hi, I'm Mami. I think I've seen you somewhere," I said quietly in Japanese to the blond girl with pigtails.

"I don't think I know you. I'm Usagi," She answered with a slight confused looking tilt to her head.

"I do know you!" I cried out happily in English, the I switched to Japanese and lowered my voice very low, "You're Sailor Moon, and those three are three o your four protectors Sailors Mercury, Venus and Jupiter. Sailor Mars goes to TA, and the outers all go elsewhere."

Usagi looked stunned by me. She looked at Ami (the blue haired girl), then Minako (the other blond), then to Makoto (the brunette).

"How did you know?" Ami asked equally quietly.

"Well there is an entire series about you, it's aired in at least three countries other than Japan. I can't believe you didn't know. You could have at least found out using a computer Ami-san," I said quickly.

"But, we just defeated-" Minako started

"Galaxia, during which time all your sailor crystals were taken by Sailor Galaxia except or Sailor Moon who sacrificed herself so that she could save all of your sailor crystals," I cut in quickly.

"You really do know everything!" Usagi gasped. It was right about then that a raven haired girl came running up to the other girls. This was Hino Rei, she lived at a temple with her grandfather, and her crush (which she won't admit) Yuuichiro. She was Sailor Mars.

"Minna! I saw-" then she broke off and looked at me. I was wearing a sailor uniform, much to my pleasure. I had been wanting to wear one since I was little, and just starting to watch the Sailor Moon shows.

"I bet you saw something in the fire didn't you? Is it another enemy? I didn't think there would be another until the height of Crystal Tokyo when the Black Moon attack forcing Chibi-Usa-chan to travel to the past to steal Usagi-san's Silver Imperium Crystal," I said ponderously. The others all stared at me in shock. I of course didn't notice

"Well no…I saw a new sailor. She wore pink, red in gold. But her fuku looked like ours. She had brown hair, and brown eyes, and she wore a visor," Rei said a little slowly.

"Oh! A new scout, then there has to be a new danger for a new scout to awaken. Perhaps you should ask Luna-san and Artemis-san if they know about this new scout. Asking the outer scouts might be a good thing to do as well," I was still a little out of it.

"You look a bit like her," Rei said examining my red choker with a moon on it.. I was a little embarrassed I mean here I was taking to Sailor Moon and I was wearing a choker that looked like a piece of her fuku. I reddened quickly. But Rei's eyes had slid past the chocker to the metal cuff on my left wrist which had my name engraved on it. She quickly took in the tall socks and black ballet flats before returning to my face.

The bell rang and we all hurried off to our first classes, and Rei ran really, really fast to her school.

"Mami!" Ami called out to me after school. I turned and waited for her my hands full of binders and textbooks. Teachers around the world seemed to agree that they should give students as much work as possible, as fast as possible. Ami's arms weren't as full and I had to wonder where she put everything.

"Ah! Ami-san!" I called back. When Ami caught up we started walking towards the school gates.

"When did you get here? I noticed that you're in our grade, but I don't remember you from last year, or any other year at Juuban Middle" Ami commented.

"I just moved here over the summer from Germany," I answered.

"Oh! I once had a chance to go and learn in Germany,"

"I know, but you came back and helped your friends who were in a major fight they couldn't win without you instead,"

"You unnerve me a little, how you already seem to know everything about us before we even met you. But at the same time I feel connected to you,"

"It's not likely I'm the new scout Rei-san mentioned this morning. Even if I look a little like her, because my power would have awakened earlier right? Or I would have found my way to Japan sooner I've known about you guys since I was in elementary school. I think I must have seen things before they happened or something. Like Maybe Naoko Tacheuki could see the future or something," I said quietly. I would love to find out I was the new scout But I didn't have anything to set me apart from others, like Ami's IQ, Minako's ability to find the perfect guy for anyone but herself, Makoto's or Haruka's strength, Michiru's artistic, or musical talent, Mar's spirituality, Setsuna's ability to sense time, Hotaru's seriousness, Usagi or Chibi-Usa's loving heart. Not even Chibi Chibi's cuteness.

"But none of us awoke until there was a danger to be fought, and we were ready," Ami sounded as if she had heard my thoughts. I kind of hoped she hadn't.

"But I there's a danger, shouldn't Rei-san have sensed it? Unless the danger is the new scout like it was with Galaxia, and her Animates," I countered

"But I think it is you," Ami said as we reached my house. I had a lot of homework to do, so I said goodbye and rushed up the stairs to my calmingly blue room I wish I was that scout, but I wasn't stupid. I knew I wasn't. I was so depressed I started writing a new story. I was supposed to be a fanfiction about crystal Tokyo. I had actually started it right after I got my tablet. But I deleted the whole thing. I hated it. I had cast myself as a new sailor scout, and after meeting some I couldn't finish it. Because in that story all the original scouts died. That would hurt too much to finish now.

The next day was the first time I met any of the Outers. Haruka-san and Michiru-san rode up to school on a bike. Setsuna-san came in a car as the school nurse. Which was good because I got sick easily, and I was in the nurse's office a lot of the time. But I was disappointed, because she was really working at Juuban middle where Chibi-Usa (who had returned to the past or some reason I don't) and Hotaru attended.

They all made a point of seeing me. I think they believed Rei-san, which I didn't. I couldn't be a scout. I think it was completely impossible. And I brooded over these thoughts as Haruka-san and Michiru-san watched me all day. So I worked on my tablet. They were mostly sketches. I liked the way it was easier to get my work to my friends overseas by my tablet. I didn't use my computer anymore. In fact I had finally gotten around to scanning in all my old sketchbooks, and now the sketches were all stored in folders in My Pictures.

That afternoon it was Minako who walked me home. She begged her way into my still empty house. So I fed her some German gummis and showed her my work I had been doing. To my shock she told me that my sketches looked like the scout Rei had described. And I admit she did look a bit like Rei-san's description But this was supposed to be _me_ if only I wasn't so average and boring.

"I you finish it in red, pink and gold and showed it to Rei-chan she would probably think you had read the vision from her mind. Which I don't think would phase her in the least," Minako said looking through some of my other black and white sketches.

"Why wouldn't that phase her?" I asked just as Minako reached the sketch I had done of Sailor Chibi Venus, Which was a character I had made for my old fan fiction I deleted.

"Who is this?" Minako asked tracing the line of the white goggles, and the atypical sailor fuku.

"That's Sailor Chibi Venus. That's her third revolution of power," I explained as I started on a new sketch in my tablet. She was of course looking at the files on my desktop

"Chibi Venus?"

"Yeah, she's your daughter in the future. She doesn't awaken until after the other inner scouts. And Sailor Terra of course," My newest sketch was of Sailor Elle, she was supposed to be my half-sister, which of course I don't have one. But it was still fun to draw her.

"Who's Sailor Terra? This one?" Minako had lipped back to a picture of Sailor Rose, who was supposed to be me. I reached over her shoulder and flipped it to a girl with long blond hair in double odangos and a green and gold fuku. Minako stared at her in silence for a moment then turned around to see me add the outline of a fiery dragon circling Elle's orange boots.

"The one in green is Sailor Terra, she's Usagi-san's much younger, younger daughter. She awakens when she's fifteen. And she ages a little more normally than Chibi-Usa-chan," I told her. I was defining the flames, I could almost feel the heat of them.

"Setsuna-san said that Usagi never has a second daughter," Minako said suspiciously. I shrugged and continued my sketch.

"I she does, then she will come to the past, and become friends with me and my friends. She comes with Sailor Cosmos," I said tossing in such a powerful name casually.

"Cosmos? Cosmos is Usagi!" Minako cried in shock.

"Yes, she is isn't she?" I said switching colors to red.

"how did that happen?" Minako asked eagerly, "Rei didn't see it, and Setsuna won't ever tell us anything."

"I don't sense the future like them. I just write about my dreams. I have some pretty bizarre ones. You wouldn't like that fan fiction anyway. It's not very happy. In fact it's pretty much downright sad," I told her quietly. I hated it now. I absolutely despised it. How could I kill such kind people even in my thoughts? I didn't know.

"tell me about it?" Minako cajoled. I refused and got back to my sketch. Minako left a little while after that. I knew she was going to tell the other scouts what I had said. But I didn't really care all that much.

It was several weeks before anything new happened. I was escorted home everyday by one of the scouts. And everyday they carefully tried to find out about me, and about my stories, and how I knew so much about all of them. I could even tell them their astrological signs.

We were in school and Haruka was watching me like a hawk, which while cliché is actually a good description because she was the scout of wind and sky. I was working on a sketch of Dark Wolf, one of my bad guys. I couldn't seem to stop drawing them. Or thinking about their story.

But just as I added my signature to the corner I felt the earth tremble. No one else seemed to notice. It was a bit like that throbbing I had been feeling all along, except stronger. I could feel it at if the throbbing was coming from inside my skin. But the rhythm wasn't the same as my heartbeat, which was accelerating. Then the throbbing got even stronger and I cried out. I know how stupid can I get right? But I cried out all the same. Haruka got a weird look on her face and turned around to look at Michiru, who was rubbing her temples. I looked at the other scouts in my class. They were all looking uncomfortable. I excused myself from class and raced through hallways. I could hear the scouts following me, but I had to get to the source of the throbbing. I had to stop it. I felt like it was really important somehow.

My feet carried me through winding streets and down alleys until I had no clue where I was anymore. But I knew where I was going. The throbbing was speeding up, like it knew I was coming, or maybe it was because I was getting closer? But before I could reach where I sensed the throbbing to be, it stopped. I turned in circles trying to find it again. It was right about them that I realized that this whole situation would look really good in a Magical Girl Anime.

And as I realized that, I also realized that if this was an anime this would be the moment when the monster attacks and my friendly mentor would teach me how to transform. The bad part was, I wasn't in an anime, I didn't have a friendly talking animal which was way smarter than me. All I had was this weird feeling that someone was watching me. You know that feeling that you always have to scoff at when you're reading a book? The kind of tingling along your spine which chills you through. That feeling. Well I'm one of those scoffers and I promise I actually felt it. I seriously felt like I was being watched

And of course I was. By Sailor Saturn who quickly dropped to the ground in front of me glaive in hand. I watched the glaive carefully, she had enough power to destroy the world if she felt like it. She examined my serious face with those wide innocent looking purple eyes.

"I think you are the one we've been looking for. You felt it didn't you? That's why you ran off. You know that was what Mars would call 'major bad vibes'," Saturn said watching my face

"I can't be. Don't magical girls have people who guide them when they transform for the first time? I don't have anyone. And not only do I not have a wise person helping me I don't have any special skill or anything like that," I said seriously to the younger girl

"But you do. Didn't you ever notice that like Naoko-san you've had visions of the future to come? That's a talent. And you are the new sailor scout, we can help you if you like. But I feel that once you transform you'll understand everything," Saturn told me. Then she tossed me a henshin rod. It didn't have any marks on it like the other scouts. But it was gold, red and pink. It was sort of marbled. I could feel it throbbing much more comfortably than that other feeling, which I still couldn't find, although it had started again.

"Ruby Rose transformation," I whispered at the rod. It began changing. It was now a long scepter which had a rose carved from a huge piece of ruby at one end. The rose was partially closed. But it was just starting to bloom. It was still the same length as the henshin rod Saturn had tossed me only a second before, but it didn't look a thing like it had.

"The words will come to you as you need them," I looked up as she said this, but she was already gone. I really couldn't keep up with them like this. But I was a little freaked out about the fact that there were random scenes and words floating around me head. More than normal at least.

I was really quiet for the next several days. The scouts noticed and tried to make me talk more. They even took me to Rei's temple where I sat quietly as Usagi and Rei fought about what had happened to Rei's comic books Usagi had borrowed.

Or at least I sis until cute little Chibi-Usa tapped my shoulder and leaned down to look at me.

"Hi! I bet you're Mami aren't you?" Chibi-Usa asked as I sat with my knees to my chin.

"Yes,"

"I'm Chibi-Usa, I'm Usagi's cousin,"

"No you're not. You're from the future And you're her daughter. You're also known as Small Lady Serenity," I said wearily. I wished they'd stop feeding me lies.

"I know that! But we're not supposed to say it out loud," Chibi-Usa didn't seem phased.

"So do you want to practice with me?" Chibi-Usa asked pulling out a locket, which I knew contained her pink heart crystal.

"I don't know how," I said. But I pulled out the henshin wand anyway. It was then that the throbbing slammed me again. I cried out in pain, again. But this time the pain got worse. It got to the point that I passed out. When I came to the scouts were standing around me.

"What happened?" I asked groggily. I was still in pain, but it was a little better now.

"We…we don't know," Usagi said from somewhere behind me head, which was throbbing violently.

"We think that whoever is out there might have sensed you and attacked before you could," Luna answered, and I was surprised because I figured she was going to act like she didn't know that I knew that she could talk. I was wrong apparently.

"So what should I do?"

"Transform," I think every single scout said it.

"You've been avoiding it. But I think it's time," Luna said quietly.

I shook my head and sat up. I took account of the pain. There was the splitting head-ache, and my back hurt from falling hard onto the ground. And course course my knee had been stationary for so long it was bothering me again too. All in all not my best. But I grabbed my henshin wand off the floor next to where my head was and called out the first thing that came to mind which happened to be "Ruby Rose transformation!"

My henshin wand floated to my chest, and the wand disappeared, leaving the rose floating in front of my chest. From it flowed ribbons with wrapped themselves around me. And behind that was the cloth that grew forming my outfit into a three tiered skirt, with poofy eternal sleeves. There was a golden tiara on my forehead, and connected to it was a pink visor of some kind. It was a bit like Mercury's blue visor, except it was pink. It even had a kind of lame looking pink earpiece, which had a piece that came down and formed a microphone for me to talk into. The funny part was I had a little red mini computer in my hand, which had a pink and a gold rose on the back.

I had to laugh. I looked like a cuter Sailor Mercury. Of course it was then that I realized the mini-comp was hacking into my sketches I had on my tablet and saving them. Then it started to sort through them until there was a picture of a shadowy figure which was surrounded with creepy looking vines, and stonework which looked a little like vines. The computer did a scan of the city (I know because it showed me a map as it did a grid search). Then it showed me a GPS route to a little jewelry store I remembered from watching the first episode of Sailor Moon in three different languages.

"I think we need to save Usagi's old friend Naru-chan!" I cried out in panic. The scouts were all just staring at me.

"Why do you think that?" Usagi sounded worried.

"Because there's this sketch I did of a potential bad guy for my fan fictions and my mini-comp processed it and told me it was hiding at Naru-chan's store," I said annoyed Then I started off without waiting or them. Of course they caught up in just a moment, all ten scouts following me as I led them to a little jewelry store they all knew better than I did.


	3. Chapter 2

Act I, Chapter II

To Go Crazy

"Are you sure?" Uranus asked as I stared in at the rather slow day at this jewelry store.

"I was pretty sure. I mean this is where Mico sent me…" I trailed off staring through the front window through rose-colored glasses. Well only literally was I doing so.

"Mico?" Mars wasn't being very friendly as she said this.

"Short for mini computer, plus he's pretty smart," I kept scanning over the place with my eyes. Then I realized my folly. Mico was so much better at this stuff than I was! So I put him to work.

I started with some simple generic scans. Which of course didn't come up with anything; I could see Mercury working over to my side with similar scans I guessed. So I figured I could leave that kind of stuff to her. In fact I was pretty sure that if I left everything to her we'd get done faster. But I ran Mico through some more scans, life, evil 'vibes'. But somehow he didn't come up with anything, nothing at all.

I ran through every test twenty, thirty times. I don't know. I'm probably exaggerating. Then I figured it out. I should be scanning for my shadow. I did.

Mico started beeping like crazy; he drew the eyes of all the other scouts. But he quieted down after some reassuring. He is a bit like a very smart, very cute dog. I kept that in mind.

"It is here. But most scans can't get a lock. Mico only got it in the first place because I had a sketch on my tablet, well I drew it in a sketchbook first, but it got scanned in, and now it's in my tablet," I said as the scouts watched me warily. I started whispering commands into the microphone over my lip. Mico responded quickly. It drew up a holographic picture of my sketch, it looked really solid. I really love Mico.

"What is that?" Venus sounded a bit disgusted.

"I…well to tell the truth, I don't really know. I was sitting at my desk, completely bored one day, and the image popped into my head. So I drew it. This must have been at least a year ago. I think the shadows were because it's hiding I don't know what it's hiding from, but it's hiding," I told them quietly, "I think it's-" And of course I didn't get to finish saying I thought it was hiding in Naru-chan's jewelry store, because it decided to stop hiding.

Or maybe that grotesque ball of green vine looking things was just one of it's minions. I kind of didn't want to know which one was true. I kind of wanted to run away, and hide. Because you know running away and hiding is usually a very safe choice. But I didn't get to choose. Mico chose for me.

Mico ran words across my visor, which, while it sounds cool, isn't. Because you see I suddenly _couldn't_ see. But I read the words quickly, hoping they'd go away.

It said _Rose Thorn_ As if a rose thorn was gonna beat something that looked like it was hiding some rose thorns to hit us with But I whispered it into my mic and suddenly I had an overwhelming urge to spin in twirl like an idiot I mean how stupid is that? But I figured that Mico knew better than I did what to do, so I did what he told me to do.

Which meant I spun and twirled around like an idiot. But I didn't feel like an idiot doing it? I think I actually liked it. And of course per the whole magical girl thing I called out loudly "Rose Thorn!" That weird transformation rod came into my hand. And I found myself in a ridiculously cool dress I didn't feel like pondering it.

Also per magical girl formula the bad guy disappeared, well it turned into dust, but really close enough. I felt weak, and I collapsed. I also noticed I was in my fuku once more. I think I was living a rerun.

I'm not sure why. But the next day Usagi introduced me to Naru. I mean I'd been in this school for a bit over a month, and I'm just now meeting this girl? Isn't that strange? It was then that I realized that the scouts had doubted me even more than I had. They had kept me isolated from anyone but them. I bet they thought I was an enemy. Now that I think about it, going up to them and telling them that I knew who they were (and everything about them) on the first day I was in the school probably wasn't the best idea. Mico was laughing at me from my pocket. He had stuck around after I transformed back. But Mico was a little paranoid, so he was posing as a cell phone with a full keyboard.

I pulled the laughing (possibly mind reading) cell phone out of my pocket and sent it a command to shut up. He did, but I figure he was probably still laughing on the inside. But back to meeting Naru-chan. This is how it went:

"Hello, I'm Mami Kell,"

"Oh! Are you foreign then?"

"Yes, I just moved here from Germany,"

"I wish I could go see places. But I've lived here all my life,"

"I'd count that as a blessing if I were you. Moving to a foreign country is a pain. A complete and utter pain, I would prefer to be without,"

"I still think it would be fun,"

Then she spent the rest of the day grilling me about who I was, where I was from and such. I didn't really expect it. The anime and the manga both portrayed Naru-chan as a gentle and shyer person than she really was I kind of wondered why. But at the time I figured that the scouts were considered more important, and Naru-chan was sort of just lost in the mix. The same was true for Umino-kun, who I met the next day. But the way he acted (the grilling me about everything) was a little bit more in character than Naru-chan doing the same thing I figured by tomorrow the whole school would know everything I told Umino, so I was careful not to tell him too much.

"Usagi-chan, your friends are very tiring," I said as I let Usagi into my house. Usagi took her shoes off at the door, even though I didn't.

"Yes, but they really are very nice people," Usagi answered as I let Harry out of his crate, where he was exiled all day while everyone was busy. Harry promptly jumped up on Usagi, and covered her in slobber.

"Sorry about that," I said as I pulled Harry down. The two of us (with Harry close behind) went up to my room, where I fed Nesquik, and tossed a small pack of gummis to Usagi.

"What about your friends?" Usagi asked looking at the photos I had framed and lined my long dresser with, well I really crowded it to death.

"They're just as exhausting, but in a different way," I picked up a picture of a girl with really short semi-curly hair, "Like Michaele here, she's forever switching crushes, and boyfriends. Plus she never stops playing DDR," I picked up the picture of a girl with hair that went just past her shoulders, "or Corey, she insists that her hair is brown, when it's not really brown. It's really more of a reddish color," I picked up the picture of Matt with his downy brown hair, and clear ice blue eyes. I set that one down with a sigh.

"What about him?" Usagi asked picking up the picture I had just set down,.

"Matt? Well Creighton Matthew Whitmire is as blind as they come. He never did figure out that I liked him more than he liked me," I was sighing and getting depressed again. So I picked up the picture of Dominic, Rhett, and Jordan on the bars out back of Würzburg Middle School, "These three. Well these three were the most exhausting of all. You see I also liked Dominic," I said pointing to the boy with short curly blond hair, "But Jordan and Rhett were his best friends, and wouldn't leave us alone, even when the two of us were going out," Rhett was smiling out with his too small shirt showing his stomach, and Jordan was about a foot off the ground, he was very short.

"Oh," Usagi set down the picture softly, "Tell me about some of these other people?" Usagi requested her hand flinging out to encompass all the pictures on my dresser. So I did.

I told her about Marie, Livi, Megan, Ashley, Kristy, Josef, Michelle, Devon, Hannah, and everyone else. All those people I had known from sixth grade, to eleventh (which is what I was in now. Can't believe I forgot to tell you that…). I even told her little stories about everyone Like how Hannah was the one to get me to start writing, and how Kelsey had torn apart all my characters, because they were too perfect. I loved it when she did though. Because my characters were all me in a sense. One was a princess, one was a mage, one was a dragon trainer, and another was a ghost who had died. But my favorite was always the first one, her name was Princess Rose Emma-Ann Macay II, heir to the throne of Meapation. She was such a simple, pure character. She was so different from any of my later ideas, which came when I gained more knowledge.

By the time my little brother came home I felt a lot closer to the kind blond girl. But I didn't know anything more about her. But I had found out that I trusted her with my screwed up love life, and my dislike for dating. In fact I was pretty sure that I trusted her with my life, if that makes any sense since I barely knew her.

"Mami-chan!" Naru-chan was the one to call out to me after school today. I was a little surprised. She was nice, but she was really just an acquaintance, not a friend or anything.

"Oh, Hi Naru-chan. Is Usagi coming then?" I asked looking around behind Naru-chan to see if I could see one of the other scouts coming. I couldn't.

"No, I wanted to walk with you. Did you know that you lived pretty close to me? I figured you might like someone to walk with," Naru-chan explained softly. Now she was acting all shy and quiet.

"Oh, okay then," I said as I started off towards my house if hers was close by she'd be able to find it from my house, or somewhere close to it. Naru-chan kept pace with me quietly. Seriously, why was she so quiet now?

We didn't say a word to each other the whole way to my house It turns out she lived a few houses away from mine, just down the street really.

When I got inside I flipped open poor neglected Mico and asked for any messages. As I was flipping through random notes from my mom, and dad during the day I found one that made my eyes tear up. I had a note from my sister My sister I hadn't heard from in months. I missed her, even though I knew she was glad to be rid of her pathetic excuse for a younger sister. All Lauren said was '_Hey, how r u n japan? I'm good. I have a really busy schedule, sorry for not talking._' It was then that I realized how much I missed my big sister, how I could always talk her into driving me to the book store, or the library, how I could usually make her smile. How she teased me about how much I ate, and about how my laugh sounded faintly like a zebra. How she'd call me Stripes, how I'd call her Thumper.

I broke down and cried.

"Hey, you're in a bad mood today," Haruka commented as I drifted to the library during lunch break.

"Yeah, I got a text from my sister last night," It was barely better than a whisper. It was also the first thing I had said all day. My bad moods tended to last awhile.

"So isn't that a good thing? Unless something's wrong," Haruka said keeping pace with me. This if it had been anyone but Haruka, would have surprised me. I tended to walk like I was hurrying, even when I wasn't.

"I guess, but it makes me miss her. She's off in Florida with my older brother, and my grandparents, and Aunt Ann, and Uncle Robert, and Aunt Dawn, and Uncle Tony and…" That was when I started crying. I really shouldn't have. It was really stupid, and babyish. It break down crying in the middle of the hallway with Haruka, the most distant of the scouts the only person around me. But I did.

And if I hadn't been crying I probably would have felt that slight increase of power on that throbbing feeling. I might not have been as vulnerable. I might not have found myself sobbing in an alley miles away from the school a few hours later. I wouldn't have let my senses get the better of me.

When I found myself sobbing in an alley I stopped. It was mostly just shock of finding myself where I was that made me stop. But whatever it was it did the trick. And of course as soon as I stopped I could feel it.

The throbbing wasn't like I was too close to the speaker anymore, but rather like I was the speaker. At least I think that's a good way to describe it, I mean I've never been a speaker. I mean, I'm even a rather quite person (most of the time). But that's beside the point.

And of course because you don't think that the stupid pounding (because at this point pounding is a much better adjective than throbbing) can't get any worse, it goes ahead and does so. I think I might have screamed at some point. I'm not really sure. It was a little distracting having the world pounding around away from me…or whatever it was doing.

But I think I might have gotten used to it after a few minutes. Well, whatever, at some point I was able to transform. As soon as I did I could pinpoint the source. Which of course went ahead and dropped off my radar. Stupid intelligent pounding.

Of course I ran the feel of the pounding it was beeping about a few minutes ago (I couldn't hear. I'm pretty sure I did scream, or else that throbbing/pounding was really distracting, in a painful way). I really do love Mico. He was able to find a source of the weird pounding thing. Notice I said _a_ source. Apparently it's coming from other places that Mico couldn't find at the time.

So of course me being, well me, I went off to try and kill whatever it was by myself. Can you say stupid or what?

The source of the throbbing was the center of a really peaceful looking park. Of course evil had to be in such a pretty place. Wasn't that how it always worked?

Well I had another one of those corny magical girl moments. I guess you know what I mean. That sense that everything has slowed down to an unbearable pace. And in that instant the bad guy attacks. Yeah, that's really what happened (I know how stupid huh?).

Well of course I did the magical girl thing and attacked the stupid thing. And also in touch with the whole magical girl thing, I missed. The problem is I wasn't watching this on my old desktop while snacking on Easter candy (as is a rather embarrassing habit of mine), I was living this. And that's about why I found my butt getting whipped as I basically stood there like a stump.

Now if I really was some awesome magical girl from an anime, I probably wouldn't have passed out. And I probably wouldn't have found myself drifting through my nightmares. But since this wasn't an anime, I did find myself drifting through nightmares.

_I was standing with my dad, and my older brother. We were waiting in line to get on some ride. It looked overly peaceful. So I wasn't really worried. But I seemed to be excited to ride this candy coated ride. I think I might have been five. We got on the ride (which turned out to be a flume ride) and rode it through without any worries. When we got off there was another part of the ride. We took that one too. This one was a little darker, and much more ominous. As we got on the ride I started to wonder where my mom and my older sister were. _

_The second part of the ride was like an airplane. We seemed to soar above clouds, and through them. But it was dark, and there were scary sounds in the background I really didn't like it. The whole time I was worried where the other girls of my family were._

_At the end we spiraled down into a pavilion type place At this point there was a clown who came to entertain us. To start he juggled multicolored balls. But then he dropped the balls into his pocket and instead pulled off his nose and started juggling that. I don't just mean his fake clown nose, I mean his real nose too. Then it was his eyes, and his mouth, then his ears. Eventually he was juggling every feature on his head, including clumps of rainbow colored hair._

_I got off the ride, and went off looking for my family, because while I was occupied with the gruesome clown my dad and my older brother had walked off. There was one doorway, which was flooded with pure white light. I went through it, only to find myself in complete blackness. There was nothing, anywhere. Well until I could see the mirrors. They appeared one at a time, and each reflected me. But some showed a young girl, some me as I was sure I really was. Some showed who I could only guess was me, because they looked older than me, ranging from twenty or so, to a decimated corpse. Then one, right in front of me showed a young woman with blunt cut chin length hair the same color as me, and eyes with the same light brown. But these eyes stared at me with a burning hatred, and that sneering evil looking expression could never be me. She looked like a bad guy. I really hoped I never looked like her._

_Behind me was a girl with slightly longer hair than mine. She had on a rose visor, and a pink and gold microphone and earpiece. She was wearing a fuku, and she was reaching out to me with a look of terror on her face. I reached back for her._

_I found myself ensnared in the villain-looking-me's hands. But fighting off the villain was a girl in a light blue and silver dress. She pulled at the constraining arms with a look of pain on her face._

_I knew this girl. She was a character I had made for one of my stories. She was Rose, the self-same Princess Rose I had created to be me._

_The worst part was I had, had this dream before. But it had been a shadowy figure who restrained me, and no one had come to save me. Maybe I was a little crazier than I had originally thought_

_I screamed in terror and heard a voice which slithered in my mind, "I am you, you are me. And we are entwined."_

_Another voice called out for help. She sounded lonely and fragile._

_Then that opened it up for all the other voices. They ranged from a baby's wail to an old woman's crackling voice. The loudest were the fragile voice, and the slithery snakelike voice._

_Then there was another dream._

_I was sitting in a room with my older sister. She was watching me. Today was her last day of having to deal with me, all day everyday. Today was the last day of my best summer. I was moving in a week or two, and Lauren was too. The difference was that Lauren would be by herself, and I wouldn't._

"_So, Ma Sere. You're not going to get in trouble are you? Without me here to stop you?" Lauren asked as she pulled on her orange, blue, and white knit cap over her hanging hair._

"_Of course I will. Because then you'll have to come home and visit us sooner," I told her. There were tears in my eyes._

"_I'm not coming to visit," Lauren said quietly. I really hoped I hadn't really heard her say it._

"_Of course you will! You and Sean will both come and visit. You'll come for Christmas, and for the summer. Of course you will," I said a catch in my throat._

"_No, I won't. I'm not ever coming. I'm going to college, and staying there. I'll stay with Uncle Dom, or someone. I'm not ever coming to Japan. I've been dragged too many places. I'm not going to follow like my collar is still leading me," Lauren said sternly. I knew I was going to cry, and she wasn't. Lauren would never cry in front of me, I've never seen her cry. Lauren was strong, and I was weak. But I knew I had Lauren to protect me, so I didn't have to be strong. But now I did._

When I woke up I found several people standing around me, and I heard crashes in the background. I was crying, I was in too much pain not to be crying. I could bottle emotions for a long time, but when they got to be too much the happy cheerful mask I wore broke, and it wouldn't fix itself.

I knew I was crying, my mask was broken, so I was crying.

"Rose? Are you alright now?" I didn't turn to look. I didn't know the voice, but it didn't matter. Nothing mattered all that much at that moment.

"I think she's having an emotional breakdown. But I don't know what could have caused it. I'm not getting any negative readings now. But maybe something about that monster briefly invaded her mind?" I didn't know that voice either. But the words seemed familiar, like de ja vous.

"No, I think she's okay," Another unfamiliar voice But this one was…well I guess it was a little deeper than the others, or maybe it was just a little husky, I don't really know.

Of course Mico started running my ringtone. So I reached over and raised it to my face.

"Hello?"

"Megan? Hey what have you been up to?" It was Katja I shot up quickly.

"Katja! Mein Freundin! Du bist ein Engel!" I cried happily in German. (Translation: Katja! My Friend! You are an angel!)

"Megan? What's wrong? You sound really stressed," Katja commented.

"I'm just missing Lauren,"

"I really never thought I would hear you say you missed her. I mean you learned how to say 'evil' in German so that you could say that Lauren was evil. It was your favorite phrase for two full years," Katja said laughing.

"Ja, Mein alter Swester ist sehr böse, aber ich liebe sie," I said switching to German. I really missed being able to speak German with someone else. (Translation: Yes, my older sister is very evil, but I love her)

"Yeah, I know. You told me about how you two started getting along after the tornado in Alabama. I really can't believe you got hit by that thing! I mean I lived there for eight years, and never once was I hit by a tornado. And you lived in Kansas and no one in your area even was hit. But no you go to Alabama and you get hit by a tornado," Katja sounded really annoyed that I had had such a traumatic experience when I lived in her favorite state in the union.

"Yeah, well no one can control the fact that I bring the weather. You remember how both times we moved to Germany it got really warm for a couple of weeks before it returned to normal frigid temperatures. Plus when we moved to Florida it was in a draught, then it started to rain. When we moved to Alabama the weather had all been really tame, but then there was a tornado," I told her joking.

"Yes, well I'm sure Bob has something to do with it. Couldn't you have left him here when you moved to Alabama? God I really miss you Megan-Bacon," Katja said sighing.

"Yes, the invisible ghost is going to control the weather? Katja-chan, I don't think that's how it works," I was laughing, "But I miss you too," I told her in a much more serious voice.

"Well we should get off. We're wracking up major money with this conversation,"

"Yeah I know Well talk to you later, or maybe I'll just email you," I was solemn.

"Not if I email you first," Katja laughed. It sounded a bit sad, "bye."

"Bye," I hung up first. But that's because I could feel the tears again, and I didn't feel like letting Katja hear me.

"I guess you're better huh?" A voice asked me from close behind. I swung around as fast as I could. It was Sailor Uranus.

"Yeah, there wasn't anything wrong with me," I said a little overly loud.

"Yeah, and that's why we found a giant ball of vines about to kill you," Uranus was sounding very sarcastic.

"Well, it hit me, I passed out and…" I trailed off. Those were very private feelings, private dreams.

"And?" It was Jupiter who pushed for information. I looked around seeing all ten scouts, and a rather handsome, and tall man in a tuxedo and a mask.

"And that's private," I whispered so quietly I was sure they couldn't hear me.

"That's okay, we just wanted to know if it was anything that could be important, but if it's painful, well that's okay," It was Sailor Chibi Moon who spoke up for me. I felt like hugging her. In fact I did. The pink haired girl looked uncomfortable, but lived with the hugging.

"We should get you home," Mercury said closing her visor. It was only then that I realized she had it on, and that she had been scanning me with _her_ mini-computer.

"Okay," I was very quiet, so Venus took it as an 'I'm injured' sound and carried me all the way to my house, where she left me sitting on the ledge. I stayed there for awhile after the other scouts had left. I should call Lauren, talk to her. Maybe it wouldn't hurt as much then.

The next two months were so devoid of action that I felt sure that nothing had actually happened. So as I helped my mom cook for our party we were having that evening, in honor of Thanksgiving I had not one single thought for monsters, and magic. I mean why should I worry myself? Nothing had happened, so they must be isolated incidents.

I had invited the whole sailor gang to join us, plus Naru, and Umino, but only Usagi and Chibi-Usa were coming. It was kind of nice to have someone my age there, even if the extent of their knowledge in English was 'hello', 'goodbye', and 'thank you'. So I just spoke Japanese, and dealt with the fact that they couldn't understand English, and I couldn't speak English on an American holiday. It was a little saddening, but not so much to take from the joy of having someone to talk to.

My little brother, Brian, followed Chibi-Usa around like a love-sick puppy-dog. And love-sick he seemed to be. I had to laugh when Brian told me that Chibi-Usa was only a year above him, and he saw her walking around the school all the time. Of course it might just be the Brian, like me, wanted someone to talk to, even I it was in Japanese. But Brian was really good with languages. He spoke a little German, a little French, and some Japanese. Not to mention his native English.

Usagi and I found a little corner of the house where we sat before and after dinner. At dinner we sat next to each other. Chibi-Usa and Brian were across the table from us, and the adults (my parents and all their American-military-station-in-Japan friends) were at the other side of the table from us.

When setting the table I took out all the stops. We used our nice china (which we only used once, or maybe twice a year), the real silver, and the crystal glasses (which is a little contradictory, because they aren't glass at all). I was actually a little proud o myself for getting the napkins folded properly (that was usually Lauren's job). My dad and my younger brother weren't allowed to do anything this year. So they watched football, and the Thanksgiving day parade.

Brian would have set the table, and my dad would have helped cook, but they weren't allowed to. All either of them did was my dad carved the turkey (my mom and I just don't have the muscle). Plus we sent Brian down to the base on his bike He was sent for the sparkling grape juice, and the sparkling cider. That was another thing of my family's we had sparkling juice for the kids, and wine for the adults, we did this three times a year (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years).

"Mami? Do you feel that?" Usagi asked quietly into my ear as we ate apple pie with whipped cream (me), and a very small slice of pumpkin pie (Usagi).

"What…Yes, I feel it" And I did. It felt like the earth was moving But there was nothing around us moving, and no one noticed Not even Chibi-Usa, who was looking bored as my little brother talked at her.

"What is it?" Usagi asked her voice barely carrying to my ear.

"I think it may be…it may be our enemy, whoever it is," I answered as I pulled Mico from my front right pocket. He was posing as an ipod today, I don't even know why, I don't own an ipod. I scrolled through it like I was looking for a song I wanted to show Usagi. I put an earbud into my ear, and cleaned the other on my shirt before placing into Usagi's ear.

I had learned that Mico knew how to talk. He had a very cute voice, like a very serious seven or eight year old. So a little boy a little younger than my brother.

"Enemy was first actively detected today at the Juuban Shopping District approximately four minutes, 12 seconds, and 14 milliseconds ago," It sounded so cute in Mico's little voice, so I had to suppress a giggle that was welling up inside my throat.

"I think we have some monster hunting to do," I said standing up. We were in my room (even though I wasn't supposed to eat in my room), so I was sitting at my desk with my computer playing the Sailor Moon anime, I thought Usagi would want to see it.

"I'll go find Chibi-Usa and meet you in Juuban," Usagi said leaving most of her pie still sitting there. I picked up the last of mine after I transformed and pulled my way through my window. I was thinking of convincing my dad to set it up so I had a balcony, it would make my life much easier.

I was surprised to find all the scouts silently searching the Juuban distract when I got there. Most people wouldn't have noticed them, I mean Pluto was on top of a building, partially hidden in the shadow of the building next to her, Venus was skulking through the deepest shadows, Jupiter was jumping lithely between buildings, Mars seemed to be meditating from her perch on the fifth floor balcony of someone's home.

The only scout who wasn't in shadows, or in some barely noticeable place (like far above people's heads) was Ami, she wasn't transformed She was just walking around typing into her mini-computer as if it were a cell phone with a full keyboard, instead of the highly complex piece of equipment that it really was.

I quickly moved into the shadows and lifted Mico's screen so I could read it. I knew that I could have it displayed on my visor, but it made it very hard to see I was much better at doing it this way ( from years of reading as I walked or rode my scooter, it's harder to read while riding a bike because a bike moves faster than a scooter).

"Rose?" The voice came whispering behind me. I turned to find a tall girl with reddish-brown hair. It was worn short, not even to her shoulders. Her eyes were a gray-blue color. I knew the dress as soon as I saw her. That dress had been drawn by one of my best friends as I sketched Princess Hannah. That girl had been drawn by Corey as I designed the perfect tiara for Princess Rose. Because you see, this was Princess Elle, Rose's half sister. What a time for me to go crazy.


	4. Chapter 3

Act I, chapter III

Princesses

"We couldn't find anything all night," Usagi complained the next day as we sat in homeroom.

"Yes we did," I pointed out gently.

"Yes a person who you say knows you, as a princess, and was thought up by you and one of your friends, is convinced that she's your sister, and disappeared before anyone else could see her last night. Yes ever so definitive," I turned in shock at the voice.

"What are you doing here?" I asked in complete shock. I looked her over. It was Rei of course, who else could be quite so condescending.

"I transferred here, if you're going to say you're a scout you need to be watched until we can find out if you're lying to us or not," Rei said primly in her brand new Juuban High School uniform

"You do realize that I have six scouts who are all usually within a few feet of me. Close enough to defeat me if I were an enemy," I said looking at the raven-haired priestess. She really got on my nerves.

"Of course, but if you have a sixth then there is no way you can catch us when a) Usagi is asleep, b) Ami's studying, c) Makoto's at cooking club, d) Minako is drooling over the newest idol, going to auditions, or playing volley ball, and e) when Haruka and Michiru are out doing whatever it is they do during the day. Because I will drag you with me to the temple if I must go there. That way you are never out of my sight and you cannot harm the princess," Rei seemed very serious. I had a very strange urge to laugh. But I figured she would frown upon me laughing at her.

"Yes, but you see if I really am the Rose who is associated with Elle, then I'm a princess in the need of my own protection from this evil. In case you've forgotten I have Mico, and that's it. I wish I knew for sure if I really was Rose…the nightmare said I was, but the nightmare also said I was evil," That was sentence was muttered so no one could hear, brought my headache to the forefront, and tears to my eyes. As soon as I saw Rei's face again I knew she had heard me. The mention of evil, but it was just a continuation of a nightmare that I had had for the first time when I was five.

Just then I was saved from all the other questions I was sure were coming because the teacher came in and we had to do start on our math. But I knew that it was only a temporary respite, Rei was suspicious of me. I wasn't safe from her until I could prove that my reasoning for what I did was benevolent, or if not that then it was at least not malevolent.

"What was all that about evil?" Rei asked as soon as lunch hour started. I had known she was saving up the question, I mean who wouldn't when someone they suspected of being the enemy admitted having a 'nightmare' where they were depicted as a princess, and evil. How was she to know they had both been there?

"I was referring to a recurring nightmare I've had since I was very young. It begins very sweet and soft, then things get creepy, and it feels urgent to find my mother and my sister. I've been having the nightmare a lot lately. But it's because even when I'm awake I have this feeling like I need to find my sister. I really miss her, even though she was always so mean to me. But I knew that underneath the cruel demeanor she was kind, and she loved me. And so I always wanted to get grades like her, and have a clear complexion like hers, and I wanted to be able to be so inherently smart. I always wanted to be brave like her. I've never once seen her cry, not once in my life Not even when our little sister died, I didn't see her cry even then. But I cry at the drop of a hat. I'm weak where she's strong, I'm stupid where she's smart, and I'll never be as pretty as her I'll never have her dark eyes, nor will my hair ever be that thick. Lauren was all my aspirations, except she wanted to be an AP US teacher, and I wanted to be a journalist," I trailed off a little at the end. I was ranting, or rather rambling. None of the scouts surrounding me needed to know about my periodic emotional break-downs, they had no reason to suspect why I was always so happy-go-lucky about the world. And I hadn't really meant to give them a clue.

"What are you talking about?" Makoto didn't seem happy with me.

"My older sister Lauren," I walked away at that point I didn't really want to talk about it.

"Megan?" Brain asked looking at me with his head cocked to the side. He kind of reminded me of Harry.

"Yeah, Monster?" I replied as I continued to type. I didn't even feel like yelling at him for barging into my room.

"What's up? I haven't seen much of you. Sean's on the phone," Brian told me quietly.

"I've got a ton of homework, and I have to join a club, and they don't have a journalism club. So I have to find some other club to join, I've been researching it. But tell Sean I'm busy. And ask him if he can convince Lauren to call?" I could hear the pleading in my voice at the last part, but Brian was too oblivious to hear it. It sort of saddened me.

"But you haven't talked to Sean since we moved here, I'm sure he wants to hear from you,"

"You talk enough for three of me. I don't need to talk," I told him and got up. I shut the door In Brian's face and locked it. Then I sat back down and started typing again.

If Brian had taken the time to look he would have seen that I had been typing on the desktop, because I needed that sheer white distance from my keyboard to my screen. Even if I was only writing out the conjugations of verbs in English, German, and French. I was considering adding Japanese, but I had yet to decide if I should.

The next day I was on my MySpace (isn't that redundant?) and checking my comments and messages. I had the usual crop of messages from Livi, Katja, Michaele, and Matt (nothing from Dominic as normal). But there was a friend request from ~*~LARK~*~. It was Lauren (this of course was Lauren Roslyn Kell with an 'A' added so that it sounded better).

I accepted and went back to my messages There was one from Sean as well This was unusual I almost never hear from him over MySpace, he usually just talks to me on his weekly calls. The message was short and to the point:

_Megan, haven't heard from you. What's up? Nothing much here (since you always ask), but I met a girl. I finally have a girlfriend._

I was surprised at the blunt words My older brother had never had a serious relationship, or for that matter any kind of relationship, and yet here he was with a girlfriend And he didn't even tell me her name. I was a little hurt at this, I mean who wouldn't be hurt hearing that you beloved older brother finally has a girlfriend and he didn't even bother to tell you her name?

So I replied back:

_Congrats Sean! What's her name? What's she like? Is she on your friends list? Come on I need info Sean! But nothing much is going on here either. I've got some new friends, they're pretty cool, I like Amy best, she's smart, which sort of reminds me of you, or Lauren. Maybe that's why I like her so much. Of maybe it's just because she's so nice to me. But the nicest of them all is Usagi (it's okay if you can't figure out how to say her name). Her little cousin is a sweetie too, although she's a few years older than Brian. I like her better than The Boot anyway (you know I'm joking____). But you have to tell me about Mystery Girl, as I will refer to her until you tell me, of course! :P_

"Kell-san! Kell-san! Will you answer the question please?" That was my teacher. She sort of reminded me of Frau Love, my German teacher in my freshman year. In other words she was a bitch and I hated her.

"Hai! The Shogunate was a period of time in which the Shogun was the power behind the throne and the Emperor was little more than a puppet. During this time the Shogunate often took the family of his officials, and other nobles to keep them from rebelling against the government," I answered standing up. We were in my second favorite subject, and least favorite class of the day. English, of course was my favorite. And the teacher loved me, because I grew up speaking American English, but I've been to London, and travelled in Scotland. So I knew slang from all three countries, and slang from the military children group (things like Dodds, no one not in the military would know that that was the school system for military schools. If I hadn't already learned a lot of Japanese I'd be in a Dodds school right now.

"Correct," Sensei seemed a little unsure about this, as if I had been sleeping, and drooling all over my papers and suddenly answered the question perfectly as if I had been listening carefully all along.

"How did you do that? You were a complete space case," Minako asked with a bit of wonder hidden in her voice.

"Can you help us study?" Usagi asked from the other side. Then they nodded twice in unison, it was a very cute movement.

"Yes, of course I can," I told them quietly as I watched the whiteboard in front of me. I had been sketching on it, even I'm not sure exactly what it was I drew. I think it was a wilting rose entwined with dying flames, and gently twinkling sparks, but I really have no clue if I'm right. I do know that when I tried to erase it my hand wouldn't let me. So I had Mico save it. It really was beautiful with whorls and twists, curves and angles. It seemed to contradict itself every few seconds.

Mico, being Mico, analyzed it and came up with this answer: _Symbolizes three important powers. Also symbolizes pain. Sketch should be closely analyzed by Ami's scanning power as Mercury. Also should be examined by Luna and Aretmis, advisors to Queen Serenity, currently deceased, in her stead the advisors serve the queen's daughter Princess Serenity, also known as Usagi, Bunny, or Serena._

While I love Mico he can be so vague, but since I couldn't erase it anyway, I figured that I might as well show it to Ami, Luna, Artemis, and Rei for good measure, maybe even Setsuna knows something. I mean she can see the passing of time, both into the past, and into the future.

"…Mi? Mami? Can you hear me? Earth to Mami!" I turned sharply at the voice only to hit my head on something hard. It happened to be an arm. A rather slender pale arm that looked delicate, and not at all solid enough to cause the headache I could feel starting.

"yes?" I said rubbing my head. It wasn't like me to space, I usually catch the question, or the gist of it if nothing else. That was because math class is usually very boring.

"The bell rang. Are you okay? I don't think I've ever seen you quite that spacy before," I quickly found out that the voice was actually Usagi, but the arm belonged to Rei. She had been reaching forward to slap the side of my face. I was pretty sure it wouldn't have been a light slap.

"I'm fine. But the bell rang? So school's over right?" I asked. I still wasn't completely comfortable with how the schedules worked. I didn't have to have a particular number of credits, and they didn't offer extra classes which were electives, but you had to have a club. Plus breaks were longer, so I could walk from one side of the school to the other and back and still have a few minutes to spare, and the school wasn't all that small. It was sort of a foreign feeling for me.

"yes, school's done. We were wondering if you wanted to come with us to Crown's. They have some really good sundaes and stuff," Usagi offered. Rei didn't look happy about this, but I didn't mind that Rei wasn't happy.

"Do they have tea. It's not much inside any of your styles, so I never did find out if they did. But I know they have some froofy drinks," I told them as I put everything but my whiteboard into my messenger bag, I wasn't allowed to carry a backpack here but that was okay because I always had tons of time to get to my locker, unlike the last two years.

"They cost a ton," Makoto mentioned It was then that I turned to see who else was there. I was shocked to see they were all there, even Chibi0Usa, Setsuna, and Hotaru, who generally were in the Junior High.

"I'm guessing it's going to be a scout meeting then?' I asked grabbing my purse from the floor next to me, and grabbing the whiteboard off my desk, "in which case Luna and Artemis are meeting us somewhere. That's good because Mico told me to show everyone this sketch," I said gesturing the white board a little.

"You know far too much to make me comfortable. I'm still convinced that the vision was not peaceful," Rei said glaring at me as we started off. I didn't blame her, I don't think I would trust myself in her place. But with my track record I guess I probably would.

"What is this?" Minako asked trying to touch the board. Her finger slid off it at about and inch above the board; she couldn't touch it at all.

"I really have no clue, but lately none of my sketches have smudged, nor have my paintings dripped. I don't do many paintings, but those I do always end up dripping or messing up some other way. But lately everything has looked remarkably good. I bet that I couldn't even delete the drawings done on my laptop, even if I tried. It's a little scary now that this, which should erase so easily touches nothing," I said looking at the strangely beautiful design on my whiteboard; I wondered if it would ever go away. It looked so sad and depressing.

"But the way your drawings seem to understand things no one else could grasp, well maybe they're like Rei's dreams, or Michiru's paintings? It's possible right?" It was Chibi-Usa who suggested it, "I wonder what happens to Rose, I don't remember her."

"What?" Rei looked over at Chibi-Usa sharply, "What do you mean?"

"I mean I can remember all of you from the future, but I can't remember Rose. Somehow I think that I heard her mentioned once though I think I heard Rose anyway, and I know they were talking about the past, well now, but I had thought they were talking about Papa's roses," Chibi-Usa said quietly.

"You heard about me in the future? Can you by any chance remember who was talking and anything else they said?" I asked eagerly. I wanted to know what was going on. If I was going crazy I might as well do it thoroughly.

"It was Ami-chan and Hotaru-chan, but I think Mama was there as well I also think they were talking about the Silver Millennium and the princesses. The nine of them that is. I know they said princesses. Wait is Mami a princess too? But where is the star she protects? Was she perhaps one of Papa's guardians? But he had the four knights, but no Rose-hime," Chibi-Usa said looking excited at the end as she began to theorize as to who I could have been I was still under the impression that my soul was a young one, and one that had once lived as a noble in the middle ages. It would it. But it would also mean that I had died young in my past life, and I had clung to that life.

"Perhaps the earth always was my home? I think my soul is a young one. All of you have old souls which have lived many times before, and have gained knowledge in every life. But I think it is my fate to die young, again and again. I think perhaps that is why I am who I am. That is why I can't grow up and act my age, because, well because I've lived so many lives, and never once been this old before," I was pretty sure I sounded crazy, but since I seemed to be running scenes through my head which I'm sure I've never lived, well I don't think it matters that I sounded crazy, because at this point I am thoroughly crazy.

"What?" It was Hotaru who said this. I was surprised to hear her quiet haunting voice. She seemed very serious, and rarely spoke in front of me.

"My soul has never grown old, it doesn't know how," I said quietly.

"Her eyes looked so pleading as she said that. I don't think we have any choice but to believe that she's sincere," I heard Rei say this as I came back from the bathroom a bit later. I wondered who they were talking about. Because there was no way they could be talking about me, Rei will most likely never believe my story So matter how many times I tell it, no matter how many times I try to make her understand what I'm saying.

It was then as I stopped to try and figure out what Rei was talking about that I saw her again. So was now wearing a plain gray-blue shirt, and a pair of jeans, but it was the same hair, the same eyes. She was talking with a bland haired girl, and the two of them were laughing and joking. The blond girl had long blond hair that fell to her hips in straight curtains, but somehow never fell into her face, that green eyed stare was familiar. In face even more than Elle's gray stare. Because this was not a girl from my imagination. This was a girl from my past. This was Hannah, one of my best friends. It was then that I realized that the other girl was not Elle, but rather Corey, her freckles seemed to have disappeared, despite the fact that it was summer, and her freckles always stood out in the summer.

I couldn't help but go over to them. As I approached I heard that they were speaking an odd combination of English, German, Japanese, Ancient Osseun (a language that Hannah invented), and Ancient Mean (A language I invented; pronounced may-ee-on). I sat down at a third seat at their table and forced out a simple, "Hey."

"Megan? I heard you had moved to Japan, but I kind of didn't believe it. I mean fondest dreams never come true right?" Corey said I shock staring at me.

"How….how did you know how much I had wanted to come to Japan? When you knew me in Germany I never mentioned it. I hadn't read anything about Japanese culture, or even pop culture," I asked as Corey continued to stare, "What are you doing here? I thought your dad retired."

"He did, I'm here at TA. I transferred here because they have a really good high school and college program What about you, where are you going?" Corey asked. I could have guessed that she went to TA; she was still wearing her uniform. Hannah however wasn't wearing a uniform

"What about you Hannah? What school are you going to?" I asked not bothering to ask the question I knew would be avoided, 'why aren't you in Virginia?'

"I'm transferring into Juuban tomorrow. Looks like you go there," Hannah said calmly gesturing towards my Juuban High School uniform.

"that's cool! You guys should come meet my new friends. They all go to Juuban Well Chibi-Usa and Hotaru go to the middle school, and Setsuna-san is the nurse at the middle school. But they're all at Juuban most of the time," I said pulling Hannah out of her seat. Corey followed me calmly as I pulled a slightly protesting Hannah along behind me.

"Usagi-chan, Minako-chan, Makoto-chan, Ami-chan, Rei-chan, Chibi-Usa-chan, Michiru-chan, Haruka-chan, Hotaru-chan, and Setsuna-san, this is Hannah, and Corey. They're very good friends of mine," I introduced them gesturing to each o the scouts as I said their names. The whole group of us took up two and a half very large tables all pushed together. With Hannah and Corey joining us we took up the whole third table.

"Ah, Bither-san," Rei said with some shock in her voice.

"You can call me Corey I you like," My gray-eyed friend offered as I tucked my whiteboard into my messenger bag and pulled out my laptop. I flipped the screen and pulled out my stylus.

"What's that?" Hannah asked looking over at my laptop as I took a sip o my tea.

"Well It's my customary hot tea it's cherry tea today, which definitely makes me miss Katja, who used to feed me the stuff all the time,' I knew what she was talking about, but I was teasing her after all.

"Rose you idiot! I was talking about the laptop!" The whole table went silent at the word 'Rose'. No one had expected it from Hannah's mouth, well only me and Corey, who hadn't been talking anyways.

"I got it over the summer. Here let me show you one of my sketches," I offered as if I hadn't noticed the table go silent, or noticed the glance that Hannah and Corey exchanged when the table went silent.

"I would love that! Could you show me one of me? I know you couldn't keep you mind off us, you said as much in your e-mails," Corey said leaning in over my shoulder.

I promptly opened 'My Pictures', then 'Sketches', then 'fan fictions', then 'all team from dc'. Then I scanned through pictures quickly till I found the right one. It had been drawn early this summer right when I got my laptop, then I had used a combination of Photoshop and Paint to make it look really good.

It was a picture of three girls in fukus. One was in pink, red, and gold. That was what I had thought that I would look like if I was a sailor scout. Next to her was a girl in orange, yellow, and red. This was Corey as a sailor scout I had imagined to be named 'Sailor Elle'. The third one was in green and purple and had her arm draped playfully around my shoulders. This was Sailor Osseus; she was supposed to be Hannah. The three scouts looked happy and carefree, not at all like the sketch I knew was right behind it. That one was a whole scene. It was when the three scouts met a woman named Black Wolf, who was really their friend Marie, whose power had been corrupted. Rose had blood dripping down from a slash on her cheek, while Hannah's arm hung useless, and Rose supported Elle's weight, off a leg which was obviously broken. Black Wolf floated in the air in front of the trio with a menacing smile on her lips.

I opened the happy picture into my paint, and began modifying the outfits I don't know what led me. But suddenly Sailor Rose had poofed sleeves, triple layered skirts, and a visor. Elle's main colors changed to gray, blue and green, replacing the fiery colors for softer, more gentle ones. Hannah got the purple bow out of her hair, and it got pulled into a lose messing, and a little sloppy ponytail. Suddenly these three girls looked less like my imagination, and more like the girls sitting on either side of me. I saved the picture and flipped to the deadly morbid scene. I think I heard Hannah gasp.

I took it into paint, and once again the outfits changed, but not only that but the capital building in the background changed to Tokyo Tower, and Black Wolf turned into an unearthly beautiful woman with slanted eyes and a deadly gaze. Behind her sickly green vines curled up trying to cover the Tokyo Tower.

"Mami? Mami?" It was Usagi, I hadn't realized that I had been staring blankly at the finished sketch. Because it was done now, I was not going to ever change it again. It was done, now I just had to wait for it to happen.

"Megan? I think we need to talk to you," Corey said quietly, I was pretty sure only I heard it.

"I'm fine Usagi-chan! But I think I'll take Hannah-chan ,and Corey-chan over to my house. I think they'd like to see how my taste has changed since they last saw me," I said saving the picture and flipping my screen back.

"Yeah, I'll see you in school Monday or maybe later this weekend?" Usagi said softly. I hadn't even realized it was Friday.

"Yeah, I'll call you later and we can figure it out," I said meaning I'd use Mico to send a message to her communicator later to see what was up with this enemy, and what my sketches were warning this time.

"yeah,"

"Wow! I can't believe your mom let you paint your room like this!" Corey cried happily upon seeing the vibrantly blue walls, with their silver and white designs.

"yeah, well she wasn't fond of it at first, but I think it's starting to grow on her," I commented as I went over to my desk I turned on my iRiver and flipped to Butterfly by . It was one of my favorite songs.

"So what did you two need to talk to me about?" I asked as I set myself in the blue moon chair I stole from my sister a year ago.

"well, about those drawings you did. Well we've seen one of the girls, and we are the other two. Well see the pale colored one was me, and the purple and green one was Hannah. But we saw the flowery girl, I'm sure we did. Or at least I did. Hannah won't believe that I found Princess Rose, because she's supposed to be you," Corey said bluntly. I love my friends thay rarely beat around the bush. But Corey's words must have driven me over the edge because I promptly began a round of hysterical squeaking laughter. Hannah and Corey seemed unnerved, I hadn't laughed like this when they knew me.

"I…I am Rose…"I gasped out between giggles. I couldn't believe it I had actually seen Elle, I wasn't going crazy after all!

"But, you haven't Changed," Hannah said softly looking at me. I had noticed earlier that Hannah's acne had cleared up, and her hair was blonder, just like the absence of Corey's freckles.

"What do you mean?' I was surprised it came out relatively normal.

"You don't look any more like Rose than a few years would account for. You can't be her," Corey said looking at my not quite perfect complexion, my not quite straight teeth, my too-short-to-be-Rose's-hair. I didn't look like Princess Rose.

"But I am," I said pulling Mico out of my pocket. He looked like himself for once. I typed in for my henshin wand I appeared floating in front of me I took it in my hang and called out, "Ruby Rose Transformation!" There was the shower of roses. But something felt different, so I called out a different phrase, "Princess Rose Transform!" The roses lifted and left a dress in their wake. It was a tall dress with pale blue layered skirt, and a pristine white corset, pale blue gloves adorned my arms, and the sleeves were slit near the top so that they dangled loosely against both my arms and my sides. I could see in the mirror across my room that my hair reached down past my knees, my complexion was cleared, my teeth were strait, and a silver tiara adorned with pearls, and blue sapphires rested atop my head. But the most shocking of all was the fact that there was now a rose tattooed between my breasts, just high enough that most of my shirts would show the whole thing!

"it's not going away!" I wailed at Hannah and Corey as they watched me panic over my long hair, and the tattoo of a rose.

"You know neither of us ever freaked out like this," Corey commented at some point.

"Neither of you have a tattoo on you chest!" I screamed suddenly glad my family had gone to a restaurant for dinner.

"True, true. She's really got a point. Plus the two o us by nature look more like our princess selves," Hannah said touching my shoulder. Why was I such an idiot as to make my princess self have all my good traits and none of my bad? I had too many bad traits.

"What am I going to do?" I sobbed on the bathroom floor. I had somehow managed to transform back, but the hair, teeth, tattoo, and such had all stayed. The only that changed back was the outfit. And Mico couldn't call up the henshin stick, so I was really screwed.

"I…I don't know, neither of us ever had this much trouble," Corey said sighing.

"I know!" I cried happily pulling Mico out. I opened it and called up the scouts, all of them.

"What now?" Rei asked irritated, it looked like she had been trying to sleep.

"Sorry, sorry. It's just that I have an emergency, can we meet at the shrine?" I asked my voice sounding softer to my ears.

"yeah, whatever," Rei said before disconnecting.

"We'll all meet you there," Usagi said and the rest disconnected quickly.

I turned back into a princess and Hannah and Corey did so behind me. I had found out that by concentrating I could switch back and forth between the two forms, but not a scout form, not yet at least.

Princess Hannah had a simple circlet of gold on her forehead, and she wore a light green cotton dress, which was simple and didn't constrict movement like mine. Her cloak was dark green. Princess Elle was in the dress I had seen before, it was light blue, with sliver pleats, and had a silver gauzy part around the neck. Her cloak was an aqua color that had silver embroidery all along the bottom hem, where it reached upward towards higher areas, but none of it reached above her knees. Her tiara was just plain silver with a single blue gem in the center.

By concentrating I brought up a cloak for myself. It was shiny nearly transparent sliver silk, which was nonetheless warm, and soft. It wrapped itself around me as I opened my window and climbed out. I knew from whom Rose was that I could still jump pretty far, and I had really good balance. Why the hell did I make Rose a Mary-Sue?

We made it to the temple quickly, but the scouts got there ahead of us. And they really were the scouts. All of them in their short skirts and heels looked to me a bit comical. Why was I ever so obsessive about these people and their lives anyway? I'm not sure, but I know one thing, I not now, at least for a little while I was one of them.

"Who are you?" Sailor Uranus asked fiercely. In response I let the dress, the entire outfit dissolve into my normal clothing. Which happened to be my school uniform. The rose tattoo still showed above the neckline of the sailor top.

"Mami?" Sailor Moon asked in shock I nodded dumbly.

"I don't know what to do. I transformed into my Princess Self as Princess Rose Emma-Ann Macay II, speaking of which why the hell did I give myself such a long name, huh? It goes well with the whole mar-Sue thing I've got going on, right?" I could feel the tears on my cheeks, I could hear my voice choke on my words. But somehow I couldn't figure out why all this was tragic anymore. The tears seemed a bit too dramatic I mean I could cut my hair, and put make-up on the tattoo, and suddenly I would look like normal. But the tears didn't want to stop. God I'm an idiot right?


	5. Chapter 4

Act II, Chapter I

Must there be more surprises?

"Mami?" Usagi whispered urgently a few hours later.

"What?" I voice was hoarse and weak from crying. I mean what a stupid thing to do right?

"Rei wants to cut your hair now, and Michiru is going to see if she can find a cover-up that will work with the tattoo," Usagi said gently as she forced me to get up. I really didn't want to; it felt almost normal to hair my hair draping across the ground like that, but that didn't make any sense at all right? I guess I'm a little insecure at this point.

"Okay," I assented rising from my nearly fetal position on the ground with grace that I had never possessed before.

Rei was close to my right with a pair of scissors, and a comb in her hand. I turned so the back of my head was to her as she reached me. I figured that if she was going to cut my hair she should start in the back right?

Of course it took all of ten seconds until I heard that snap, and turned to look, my hair wooshing out behind me.

In Rei's hand was half a pair of scissors, I figured out right away what had happened, the scissors had broken..

"So no cutting of the hair?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah, uh I don't think so," Minako said with a make-up bag in hand, Michiru was close behind her.

"My turn I believe," Michiru said reaching into the bag still held by Minako. I quickly pulled my top off and stood in front of Michiru, and the rest of the scouts in my bra.

Michiru had as much success covering the tattoo as Rei had with cutting my hair. Which also means that she had no success at all.

After Michiru broke her index finger trying to apply the make-up, we gave up and I put my top back on. If nothing else I needed it for Monday at school.

On my way out Hotaru passed three henshin sticks into my hand. One was pink, red, and gold, and had a flower carved into the top. Another was blue, green, and gray and was carved with a small dragon, which seemed to change every time you looked at it. The third was purple and green, this one had small glittery marks carved into it, which had sharp edges, and cut your fingers like broken glass.

I nodded my thanks as the three of us left the shrine changing into our princess forms as we went. As we left I could have sworn I heard a soft, slithery, evil sounding voice say, "Ah, so the princesses are all here. I never thought you'd get here."

"Hey Megan, do the teachers talk fast or what?" Hannah asked the next day as I led her to lunch.

"It gets easier if you speak in Japanese all the time," I replied in my still slightly halting Japanese I mean who expects someone to learn perfect Japanese in a year?

"Okay, then I will," If my Japanese was halting I shudder to think what you would call Hannah's complete massacre of such a simple statement.

"Yeah, you really should work on your Japanese, It's not that good," I said as we reached my favorite spot. It was a small shady spot in the courtyard by the pool. There was a tree, and a spot of really springy grass Plus there were all the flowers Overall it was a very nice spot.

"I know, but you had more time to learn, both in classes and practically than I have. Just give me some time and I'll be speaking better than you," Hannah said tossing her blond hair behind her shoulder. I thought I caught a glint of metal, like a tiara in her hair, but it was gone after a second.

"Yeah, sure. Just like you speak better German than me?" I asked her in impeccable German.

"Fine, but I bet my Osseun is better!" Hannah argued.

"Yes, but my French, and my Mean is better than yours, so overall I speak more languages better," I said in my halting French. Hannah gave me a blank stare until I repeated in Japanese. Somehow she lived in Europe for seven years and didn't learn one little bit of French, or Spanish, or Italian. In fact she can only speak English, German, and her horrible how-the-hell-did-she-get-into-a-Japanese-school Japanese. Well not counting Osseun (which she made up) and a tiny bit of Mean, which she picked up from me.

"Whatever," Hannah muttered pulling out the sandwich she had packed for lunch. I giggled a little (yes I am by all accounts a giggler), then settled down to eat my own sandwich.

"Can we join you?" Usagi asked as I took a bite of my sandwich. I had to swallow it, and Hannah was looking dumbfounded, so I nodded and Gestured with my sandwich towards a bit of open area between me and Hannah.

"Thanks," Usagi said settling herself (rather clumsily I feel obliged to mention) between us and Rei who had been with her set herself down across from Usagi forming a small four person circle.

Usagi and Rei both had bentos which they opened and ate with grace I knew I didn't have, and I also knew Hannah could never acquire. I learned German the same amount of time as Hannah, but I had picked up a whole lot more than she ever had.

"What were you two talking about?" Rei asked suspiciously. I don't think she'll ever like me, not even if I live the rest of my life in Japan, in fact if I did I think she would just hate me more.

"We were talking about Hannah's loose grasp of any and all languages. Well not exactly true, she seemed to pick up her own language she made up well enough," I said and took another bite of my sandwich.

"Oh, well English is very hard for me, but you have trouble with Japanese, maybe we are just not made to learn a second language," Usagi suggested in simple Japanese. I'm pretty sure Hannah caught it because she started nodding her head a few seconds later.

I was kind of proud of Hannah, because she was able to understand and respond to Usagi. I could sometimes wish that Usagi wasn't quite so nice, and kind-hearted, but then she'll do something ditzy, and clumsy and I'll again have to wonder why I adored such a person all through my childhood. In fact I adored her to the point of ridiculousness. I somehow wish I could take back some of my obsessive behavior But I know that if I could go back and change something, my obsessive behavior wouldn't be what I changed.

__________________

When I woke up Christmas morning I found myself disoriented. Somehow these walls didn't seem to be the right blue, the patterns I had worked so hard to paint seemed to be in the wrong places, my desk wasn't quite the right pattern of badly painted white, and most importantly I wasn't looking over at a large collection of pictures on my nightstand, they seemed to all be gone. The strangest part was that I could have sworn I heard snoring, but that's absurd, because who would be in my room other than me?

Well of course I closed my eyes, and when they opened again my pictures were back where they should be, and my paint jobs seemed normal, but that hadn't changed the rather loud and insistent snoring coming from somewhere. I swung myself out of bed and found my foot colliding with something sot, but strangely solid. The snoring stopped abruptly. With the end of the snoring I remembered that we had invited all the scouts, plus the two princesses to stay over for Christmas, since they didn't seem to celebrate it as seriously as us, or else they didn't have family to celebrate with.

Michiru, Haruka, Setsuna, and Hotaru had stayed at their house, and Chibi-Usa had stayed over with them. Ami had decided to celebrate with her parents, and Minako had been forced to stay with her family for the holiday. But Usagi, Rei, Makoto, Hannah, and Corey had all taken us up on our offer. I must have heard Usagi snoring.

I walked across the room careful not to step on anyone. My computer screen had been turned off the night before, so that there wasn't too much light in the room, but my computer was still functioning. So I turned it on now and filled the room with light. Which it took me a moment to realize why the difference was so great, it was the middle of the night still. That was weird, I wasn't usually asleep till late on Christmas Eve, but it was only one in the morning now.

I clicked open the internet from the banner at the bottom to find that my YouTube account had stopped some time in the night. Which I really should have already known, because I had only heard Usagi's snoring, not my music. Suddenly the silent room (Usagi was now awake obviously) was filled with the sound of t.A.T.u's All the things she said. I hummed along while I checked my email, until suddenly I heard more snores. Usagi had gotten back to sleep.

I checked my email, and my MySpace, and then worked on my stories for awhile. I stayed up all night basically. I know because I didn't get off the computer until Brain came barging in, per normal, to wake us up, so that we could wake up my parents, and then we could open presents.

Sean had come home a few days ago, and must have woken Brian up this morning, or else he wouldn't have been in my room at exactly six o'clock, which is when we were allowed to wake my parents up.

As she promised Lauren hadn't come for the holidays. I had expected it, but it still hurt to know that she wasn't even going to come or Christmas, which is the traditional time for family. We had all sent our presents a few weeks ago hoping that everything would get there either a few days before, or after Christmas. I got an email from Lauren last night (while I was working on my stories) and she told me she had gotten them just in time for Christmas.

"Why do you have to wake us up this early?" My mom complained as I fixed herbal tea for the two of us, coffee for Sean, and my dad, and hot chocolate for everyone else.

"Suck it up," I called over my shoulder stirring cream into coffee, and my tea.

"Megan," it was a warning, but a very serious one I shut up and carried the tray of drinks out.

"So who goes first this year?" Sean asked calmly. I love my big brother, "I think it should be one of Megan's friends, since they're guests. Maybe Makoto?"

"Yeah, let Makoto go first!" I agreed enthusiastically. I crawled around the tree a little until I found the printed letters of Makoto's name. I handed her the brightly colored bundle. Then I started digging for a Rei present. I found the one I had made for her, and tossed it over my shoulder, right into Rei's lap. I did the same for Usagi, then Hannah, Corey, Sean, Brian, my mom, my dad, and finally I dug out a present for me.

We stayed in that order, sometimes my parents would have a present to open, and sometimes they didn't. For once Brian ran out of presents first, I guess his presents were getting too expensive, so his hundred-fifty dollars worth was much fewer presents.

After all the presents under the tree had been opened we took down stockings, we had even bought some cheep ones for the girls. All the stockings were stuffed with a strange assortment of American, German, and Japanese goodies.

Cinnamon rolls, and the inevitable helping-Brian-set-up-all-his-new-stuff ensued after we all dumped our stockings, and replaced everything again. I led my friends up to my room, all of us with arms full of presents. I put books where they went alphabetically, put computer games next to my computer, and put all jewelry and makeup in the bathroom. The Candy stash got divided among my boxes, and tins I had displayed all over my room and bathroom. I had gotten a new pair of boots, and I put them in the corner with my riding boots, and my 'Legolas' boots.

My friends watched my do this in silence. They had all left their things in piles next to my door. But I never left new things in piles. I do however leave trash, and dirty clothes in piles, clean clothes too now that I think about it. That's why people think I'm unorganized, because I tend to leave things on the floor, things which are always in neat piles, but nonetheless on my floor.

"So, what are we going to do now?" Usagi asked me in her absolutely horrible English. I think Usagi's English is even worse than Hannah's Japanese.

"I think we'll go steal the Wii from Sean, and Brian they've had a long enough turn," I said grabbing my new DDR game off the pile of computer games I had left on the white expanse of my desk.

"Yes, DDR!" Hannah and Corey were somehow in a very creepy synchronization.

"Yes, DDR…" I said calmly leading the group upstairs to the third floor.

Perhaps I should explain my house to you better? We have a basement, which has the laundry room and storage. The first floor is the family room, kitchen, living room, dining room, and my parent's room. My room, Brian's room, and the two guest room were on the second floor. The third floor was taken up by the game room. There is a bathroom in the basement, a half bath, and a full bath on the first floor, three full bathrooms on the second floor, and a full bathroom on the third floor.

The Wii is of course kept in the game room, which means to play DDR we must travel upstairs. In case you were wondering.

I set up the game. But I let everyone else play without touching it. My knee had been acting up yesterday, and I didn't want to irritate it. I had to sleep last night with a heating pad tied to my knee. And because it was a hand-me-down it shut off at some point in the night It seems like I only ever have hand-me-dons, but hand-me-downs tend to get messed up very quickly Take my desktop computer or example. It has a bad habit of shutting down, not opening my internet explorer, switching programs suddenly, and other equally frustrating things. In fact at times it won't stream videos, and I have to make do with the music I have on my iRiver.

This new DDR had a few songs, so I obviously loved it. And for once DDR wasn't something that was handed down from one of my older siblings, so it tends to work very well actually.

"I hate you," I said calmly as Corey got an AA on a song she was only doing for the first time. Plus the song was so slow that I would have had to do it on Beginner to get even a B on the first try.

"Well of course, have you gotten better at all 'Elaborate'?" Corey joked using the nickname everyone had decided on or me. At least I wasn't 'Chicken Wings' like Michaele.

"Yes!" I cried angrily. I stood up and got on the pad calmly. I stepped to the left repeatedly until I found candy. I had gotten pretty good at the song, it was Michaele's favorite, and it was pretty fast. So I went in and put it on Basic, then I started the song. I surprised even myself in getting an AA. Corey laughed, and Hannah stared at me in shock. The two of them had been privy to my beginning attempts at DDR. In the beginning I had been so stiff I could never catch the next arrow, if I hit the first. Plus I had always returned to the center spot, I'm pretty glad I grew out of that one, because if I hadn't then I wouldn't be all that much better than I was in the beginning.

"I guess you have," Corey said as I massaged my knee. I knew I shouldn't have done that.

"Yes, I have. What did you think was going to happen when I had DDR for two whole years?" I asked watching Hannah (a.k.a. Serious face, in case you're wondering what we called her) do Crazy in Love. That was another classic DDR song.

"I don't know, but I just expected you to be as bad as you were four years ago I guess," Corey said shrugging.

"It has been that long hasn't it?" I murmured. I watched my friends feeling a strange feeling of nostalgia. But we should have been in the room off Corey's kitchen. There should be Anthony's pizza, and air mattresses leaning against the couch. In fact Katja, Michaele, and Shelly should be there too. And maybe Kristen. But I was still in a feeling of déjà vu, as if I had already lived this scene, or something very similar. And for all I know I have, I mean we've obviously proven the whole multiple lives thing. Maybe we all had a life together, and we hung out doing something like this. I mean not DDR, not unless we lived in Japan and we all died very young, in fact I think might have needed to die at seven or eight in our last lives for that to work. So I don't think that's right. Not DDR, at least.

Maybe that was why I watched the Sailor Moon series so many times. Because I knew these people, I've known them all this life. That would have to be right, right?

Right about now I'm feeling insecure, and scared. I think something is coming, and this laughing, fun reliving of past lives is about to end. I don't think we will be able to do it again. I don't think I'm going to have this nostalgic feeling again.

_____________________

It was late that night, when I was reading one of the books I got for Christmas, that I felt it. It was a bit like pain, but it wasn't really painful. I'm not sure how to describe it really. It was sharp and biting, but it left no pain.

I cried out in shock and jumped out of bed. My ridiculously long hair swung up around me…and it got shorter. When it was around the length of my elbow my sight went pink. I found a weight in my hand, and my legs were covered, when I had been wearing shorts as ridiculously short has my hair was long. But now I could feel a short skirt whisking around my upper legs. I was Sailor Rose again.

I felt the throbbing then. The same faint throbbing I had felt that first day on the plane. It was exactly the same. But now I could hear it. I could hear a low voice speaking It was speaking right into my mind, I was sure that I was meant to hear it.

"_Ah, sweet power, that's what I have now, such sweet power. The little princesses, all thirteen of them. In my grasp, all of them with full power. Such sweet power,"_ I knew what the voice was talking about, so all the sudden twelve other people found themselves jumping out of bed, as sailor senshi. All of them heard me as I whispered into the air of my room. _It's time to fight girls._

"So, now what?" Elle asked staring me down. Everyone was in senshi form, and that means everyone, including Corey, and Hannah as sailors Elle and Osseus (respectively).

"Now, we hunt," I said touching Mico's keys. A few clicks and a holographic map of the city was laid out before them. I tapped a few more keys and two spots were lit up, then a few more keys, and pictures of all the enemies I had ever come up with flashed on my visor. Mico picked up a few and displayed them above the map along with pictures Mico got from somewhere of the two vine monster things, which shrunk and floated above their respective dots.

Mico had picked the original shadow enemy, but also the one of Elle, Osseus, and Rose injured in front of a beautiful enemy. The most disturbing of the pictures Mico chose was a girl I had drawn a few days ago. I don't know why I drew her, maybe it was because I'd been having that nightmare lately, but it was the evil slithery voice from my dream. Or at least it was the face, my face distorted into a cruel beauty, which I had come to associate with that slithery voice, which burrowed into my mind.

The other girls all stared dumbstruck at this face. Because it was obviously me, despite that cruel twist of the mouth, the cold glint of the eyes, and the upward, proud tilt of the head. None of these things could be me. I have never had a cruel smirk, or a cold glint, or a proud tilt. In fact many people seem to be disarmed by my seeming innocence, and stupidity. Then they hear me talk about something which truly interests me, and then they hear me speak of a novel with such understanding they have to wonder what monster this disarming girl was.

"Is…is that you?" Mars said with shock in her voice. She looked disgusted, but she had suspected me of being an enemy right?

"No, it is an evil creature, which kills hope, and dreams. It kills me from inside. It is the focus of a nightmare, a very old one. But lately it has brought more, even scarier nightmares into my unconscious mind. This creature is a monster beyond all words, this thing is not me.

"There are several mes. One is that was a rather innocent girl, you've met her. Another is of a scared, and lonely girl who misses her older siblings, Sailor Moon, you've met her. Yet another is the power and strength of a girl who has learned to lock away all her emotions, none of you have seen this girl, not even Elle and Osseus, because she was always hidden by the innocent girl, or overshadowed by the grieving one. But there is one more girl; this one embodies hope, justice, and magic. This one embodies all that I believe close to my heart, but never say out loud. This me, you all see in front of you. This me is Sailor Rose, this me is Princess Rose," I gave my speech without looking at that face looking at me with such a cruel intent. I suppose if I were to add her to my list of mes, she would be the me which I have locked up behind all those other faces, the me which strains to b loose, the one who hates her prison, the me who would like to consume all the other, the me who would love to consume the world.

They all stared at me for a moment, they gazes blank. Then Elle patted my arm and pointed to the beautiful woman.

"I think this is supposed to be Sixela. Do you see the six gems on her tiara? Or the way her bangs fall into a razor strait line, like Alexis?" Elle commented. Alexis was our friend, but she had chosen to become the evil queen of the largest kingdom. Her symbol was that of three jewels in a star, with thin lines-barely noticeable-connecting them.

"It might be. It is just the three of us. But it if those aren't the six gems it could be Princess Katherine," I said pointing out our other enemy.

"No, it's not Katherine. She should have red hair, I think. This girl's hair is black. So it doesn't look like Sixela either. But I think those are the right gems. I mean three purple three pink, who else would pick pink and purple?" Osseus interjected.

"Yes, but I wouldn't have thought anyone would pick purple for a color at all. And yet your colors are purple and green," I commented looking pointedly at her outfit.

"So, choosing silver has so been done. I mean baby blue and silver? How uncool," Osseus was obviously taking offense at what I said about her second favorite color.

"Hey, those are just Rose's colors. My colors are gray and gold," Elle looked annoyed at being grouped in with my bad taste. Well I like blue and silver.

"Yes, and your country colors are silver and gold! Blue and gray would have been better,' Osseus pointed out.

"Yes, except then they're really similar to my colors," I said quietly. I mean there wasn't that much a difference between gray and silver, silver is just shinier. Which that suits the personality I use for a show.

"Would one of you three like to explain to us what the hell you're talking about?" Haruka asked sounding thoroughly frustrated.

"Oh sorry, we were originally contemplating whether it could be Sixela. But from what we already know for Sixela to appear her current life would have to appear. That would mean that Alexis Holland would have to show up out of nowhere," I looked around at the last of my explanation after the way Hannah and Corey had shown up on my doorstep I was a bit worried that Alexis would do the same. But if that happened them logic tells me that we could expect Hannah's older sister Katie, Kristen, Paige, Cynthia, and two of Hannah's cousins. Since there are so many of us I find it unlikely that those enemies which we defeated in one of our past lives would be that low voice I heard, and which I'm convinced is out current enemy.

"So, you don't think it is her?" Jupiter asked quietly.

"No, I'm pretty sure it is, but I think Mico's wrong. I mean it had to happen eventually right?" I said with a smile on my face. The others all looked shocked, and I think I saw disgust on a face or two, "I mean obviously the face from my nightmares isn't relevant."

"But, if Mico is wrong here, how can we be sure he's not wrong with this other one?" Venus asked the question this time. Everyone looked over at the picture of the shadowy enemy.

"I think there's something of truth in all of them. In fact I'm sure," Chibi Moon sounded so loud in the sudden stillness. No one else moved, no one said anything in reply. I think I was the most shocked by what she said, because if Mico was right then that meant that I was a threat to everyone, and it meant that Alexis was hiding out somewhere, waiting to fight us, just like in our last lives.

"Maybe we're caught in a time paradox. You know you've all lived it before right? Maybe this enemy has to do with the future, or the past and has the capability to travel through time, and was here in wait for us or years. Maybe I'm not interpreting this drawing correctly Maybe it was my ancestor, or my posterity. I mean time paradoxes are pretty common in the world I've now caught myself up in," I think I was rambling. Actually I'm sure I was. But Chibi Moon's words had panicked me. I mean I couldn't be an evil force could I? I mean I've never had blank outs, which tend to be sure signs that someone's possessed you. But I've never blanked out except when I pass out, which my mom's pretty sure has to do with something in my blood. I really don't know if she's right, but anyway I'm always left with the images of bright flashes of light passing me.

"That's not correct I would have felt the ripples of time changing," Pluto disputed my words. I should have known better than to start coming up with theories where these theories are perfectly normal, and easily confirmed or disputed.

"Maybe the change came years ago, and you couldn't find the source?" I asked weakly. I knew that I was wrong, but I felt a need to say it anyway.

What a horrible night perhaps I should have gone crazy instead. It might have been easier.


	6. Chapter 5

Act II, Chapter II

Boyfriends and Blind People

"So it's now been how long since you woke us up in a panic in the middle of the night? And woke all our powers up into an active form?" Rei asked a little annoyed. To tell the truth it had been long enough that I hadn't kept count I really had no clue how long it had been. But since it was now June first, I think I would have to guess about six months. But the enemy hadn't been active at all since then.

And my sketches haven't given us any clues, because somehow every time I try to draw it turns out looking like scribbles, I don't know how it does it either. The fire hasn't been any help either; Rei hasn't seen anything since she saw me. Michiru hasn't seen anything in the mirror, and Setsuna hasn't said a single word to anyone since she told me I was wrong that night. I'm pretty sure it's the enemy, but no one will believe me.

"Dunno," I said with a little shrug. I didn't feel like admitting that I kind of did. I was trying to write something. Maybe I'd get a premonition through that It wasn't working, I have a complete writer's block.

"Leave her alone, she's trying. I know she heard something," Hannah's Japanese had gotten a lot better these last couple of months. The girls could understand her every time, without my intervention.

"Yeah, a nightmare. You've heard her; she's had a nightmare almost every night since then. I bet it was just a stupid nightmare, I don't even think there is an enemy at all," Rei said tapping the eraser of her pencil against the edge of my desk.

"No, I was still awake when I heard it. And I transformed before I heard it. I felt this pain, but it wasn't really pain exactly. I guess it was just really sudden and kind of sharp, like it only lasted a second. I jumped up, and transformed. And ever since I've felt the throbbing It's constant now, but It's not strong enough to figure out where it's coming from," I told them again. I'd told them what happened that night so many times I think they're starting to think I really am crazy.

"We know, you've told us," Rei was being really horrible to me, even worse than before. When she talks to me it's just to tell me I'm crazy basically. Most of the time she just ignores my presence in the world.

"Uh-huh," I muttered quietly. I crumpled my paper up and tossed it towards the trashcan. It missed, of course. I mean I was on the other side of the classroom. But it made me feel better.

This one guy in our class was the one to pick it up. This guy is really big on littering, and he also seems to really hate me as if I needed more people, what with my sister's silence since Christmas, Rei's evilness, and my own current self loathing. Yeah, I really didn't need help.

"You shouldn't throw your trash," This guy? Yeah his name's Lance. I really hate his name. Because he comes from Florida, he lived there his whole life, up until two years ago, when he moved here. But everyone thought that he would e really good friends with me and Hannah, because the two of us were also from State-side. But no such luck, he hates me and he's indifferent to Hannah. The only good thing is that he speaks to us in English, rather than Japanese.

"Yeah, well throwing towards the trashcan was better than throwing it at Rei's head, or yours," I said menacingly. I seemed to have picked up a talent or menace over the last couple of months. I'm very proud of it.

"Whatever," Lance sat down at his desk, but he took the paper with him. I turned to watch him as he read it. To my surprise he got really pale! I mean he is kind of pale, what with having nothing to do with sports in his entire life, and his natural paleness, it comes out as an almost paper white. Which is not helped by his blondish brown hair. But his eyes were cool. They had this bright hazel color. Well maybe it wasn't hazel, it was somewhere in between blue and green.

In fact this guy looks a bit washed out. Plus, he tend to make it worse by wearing these wireless glasses, and the school colors are so bright I feel sorry for him. I mean he just looks lost in those bright colors.

"Hey, you shouldn't read other people's writing!" I yelled after stomping across the room and standing over his desk. I snatched the paper from his desk where he was drawing something on it. After the paper got torn in half something caught my eye; it was a tiara drawn in perfect detail, right in the corner. Behind it (drawn lighter with the tiara covering part of it) was a rose with a petal falling. I looked up at him in shock. He stared right back at me.

Right about here I'd like to say that this is the kind of moment that usually only happens in your head. To my extreme discomfort, his is really what happened.

Lance leaned in until his lips were only an inch or so from my face. I felt his breath hot, and fast, as if he had just run a mile.

This is the moment when the anime character melts into complete nonsense. Well that's pretty much what my mind did.

"Na cöhl ta Meapation, Princess," I swear my eyes about fell out of my head, that's how hard they were popping out. You see that phase is a common phrase used when swearing fealty, well when swearing fealty in Meapation, which I would like to point out is an enchanted kingdom made up by yours truly. So how the hell does he know how to speak Mean!?

"H…how…how…ha?" I swear I did that cool spidery back-up dance thingy that you see ditzy anime characters do all the time when they're nervous.

Lance sort of smiled and said simply, "I meant it when I told you 'All Glory to Meapation' you may call on me any time, princess." Then he did a half bow in his seat, the Western way, which meant a hand to the front and back of his stomach.

Lance let a moment later I mean we were in class late, but I was pretty much unable to say anything coherent. So when Hannah asked me what he said, I told her, in mean. Then went rambling on in the strangest combination of languages. Here's a little snippet:

"…Baka, na cöhl…What the hell! Nosrep diputs. Dumbkopf. Princess, how? HOW THE HELL DID HE KNOW!!..." This went on for quite some time. In case you're wondering the languages went like this: Japanese, Mean, English, Naidrokab, German, English.

The girls tried to shush me multiple times, but it was almost two hours before I could calm down, at all. Then Usagi (who was being strangely quiet) had to meet up with Mamoru, and she decided to drag me along, since she had yet to introduce me to him. I know way weird, right?

"Mamo-chan! This is Mami-chan, she goes to school with us," Usagi said rushing up and hugging him.

"Nice to-hey you look just like that girl!" Mamoru looked really shocked.

"You're not going to start blurting Mean are you? Too much shock to deal with that too," I said in a weary voice, weary enough that I'm pretty sure at least half of it came out in English.

"No, but you look like this girl from a mythology book I was reading a few days ago. In it one of the legends was of a young woman who saved the world from forces of evil, then fell in love with the perfect man for her. If you put a tiara on her head, and a gown with slit sleeves, tall gloves, and suddenly you could be the model for it," Mamoru explained. I'm pretty sure I either got really pale, or else I blushed, I don't know which. I don't blush much so I don't know what it feels like, and the only times I get really pale is when I pass out, which I haven't today. Surprisingly

"That's, um, well that's probably my last life then," I said quietly.

"What?"

"My last life (or one of them) was as Princess Rose Emma-Ann Macay II, heir to the throne of Meapation. With the help of her younger sister, her younger sister's half brother, and a rag-tag band of orphans she defeats the evil Queen Sixela, who sought to defeat Meapation, Osseus, and several other kingdoms whose names I can't remember right now. After the war she goes home, and marries her sister's half-brother Lan, who became one of the most beloved kings in all of Meapation's history," I should really get more sleep since I can't remember four or so kingdoms.

"um, that was pretty much the story,"

"Did they mention Rose's crest? Because it's been distressing me all day. Because when you suddenly see it on a piece of paper you're snatching away from a guy who supposedly hates you, then that guy swears fealty to you, not the best day," I heaved a large sigh.

The three of us had a picnic, which got crashed by Chibi-Usa, and Hotaru a little while later. Then I walked home and as soon as I got home I crashed into my bed and grabbed Mico out of my pocket.

"Analyze today's events for any enemy activity," I told him.

"No enemy activity, however your personal power has multiplied ten-fold. Lance's fealty was heartfelt, and gave you an extreme power boost. Therefore you can currently use your magic outside of Princess Form. Small amounts have now leaked into your normal everyday activities. Be wary of your 17th birthday, at that time your power will increase exponentially, which will increase the power of all the other scouts. At this time it is probable that the enemy will attack," Mico's words stunned me, and it took me a minute to notice that Mico had printed something. It was a picture of my personal crest, "Mami, please give this to Naru's mother to engrave into a men's ring, and also into a woman's ring. Give the men's ring to your vassal, and wear the other one yourself. It is important that you have it with you on your birthday, so that your power will ill it. Then you can find, and call him to you at any time.

One the fourth the rings were done. I put one on my index finger of my right hand, and the next day set the other on Lance's desk. I gave him very brief instructions "wear this at all times, especially the sixth".

He put it on his right index finger as well. I'm pretty sure Rei was watching the whole thing, but it didn't matter that much really.

"What was that?" Of course I knew she had the desk next to me, and I knew she was watching me give Lance the ring, but Rei still startled me ten feet out of my skin.

"It was a ring,"

"For what?" God I think I hate her.

"So that I can keep track of him, he is technically under me, I owe him to do whatever I can, and he will automatically help me when I need it. That's how fealty works. He gives me what he can, and I give back what I can," I told her twisting my ring around my finger.

"And the ring helps how?"

"It's been imbued with my magic, and so I'll be able to find it from any distance," Couldn't she just shut up and go away?

"So what's-" Rei was cut off suddenly. I turned to look, and she was prying at her mouth with her fingers. What now?

"What's with you?" I asked looking at her.

"I couldn't get my mouth to open!" Rei said in shock a moment later.

"Mico?" I asked pulling a charm off my water bottle; I swear he gets crazier everyday.

"A leak of your magic, beware princess,' Mico said in a singsong voice.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I muttered under my breath.

"What?" Of course she wanted to know. But the bell rang just then, and I had to get home on time today.

"Ask Hannah, I explained it to her earlier!" I called back over my shoulder. I wasn't sure why I was getting a power boost tomorrow, but why ever I still had a house to clean so everyone could come over. I was going to have a party.

Hannah must have explained it, because while I was in the middle of cleaning the downstairs bathroom my earring rang. Mico had switched over to an earring because I wasn't hanging onto my water bottle for dear life anymore.

"Yeah?' I asked into my extension Mico grew.

"Come to the shrine, Now!" Rei ordered, ten hung up on me. I didn't feel like getting shoes, so I used a trick I had learned a few weeks back. It has to do with my princess powers, and how I can change my appearance with a thought. So I switched into a cute Catholic School Girl outfit and rushed out of the house, only pausing long enough to get my purse and drop Mico in. Who knows what he'll be when I pull him out again.

"what's up? I was cleaning," I said as I came up to the whole gang where they were gathered in Rei's room. It was a little crowded.

"you didn't tell us? Why didn't you tell us!" Minako was the one doing the questioning today apparently.

"Because, it wasn't that important. Tomorrow I get a power boost, which boosts the whole group's power, so what? I'm still trying to figure out why the 17th birthday," I told them holding my ground.

"Wasn't that when you decided was a good time of year, and a good age for Rose and Lan to get married?" Corey asked inspecting a bag of German gummis, I'll have to figure out where she found those.

"Oh yeah! And then I decided that-"

"Rose should have her coronation at the same time," Hannah finished for me.

"So, um tomorrow is your wedding?" Usagi asked surprised. I mean she's not even married yet.

"In one of my past lives. I don't really have a guy to marry in this one, in case you've forgotten," I said pushing my hair back with my fingers.

"Yeah, but lives seem to repeat themselves around here," That was Makoto. I guess she was right, but not in this instance. I couldn't get married tomorrow or anything like that. No guy, too young, no book published. Not the perfect time, not even close.

"Not in this case, sorry guys," I said turning to leave again. I still had to clean the third floor today.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Everyone yelled as I sat in front of a cake I made myself. I think I did pretty well myself.

"Thanks everyone," Then I blew out the candles. For the first time, I think in my whole life, I blew out all the candles at once. I smiled slightly. It was because of this power boost thing. It started mid morning and it had been driving me crazy all day. My thoughts seem to be really strong all the sudden, especially with ire. Which made sense since I made Rose's element fire.

"Open my present first!" Brian cried happily. Since I was having my party on my birthday I was opening family presents as well as things from my friends.

"Kee-dokes Booty," I said picking up the small strangely wrapped present. It turned out to be a bundle of new earrings. I, of course, squealed; bad habit of mine.

Everyone had gotten me something, most of t was small, a bracelet, or a necklace or something. But I did get two different Sims 2 Expansions, and four books. Plus I got a boxed collection of all the Sailor Moon Anime in the mail from Marie, and a boxed set of the manga from Hannah.

The only bad thing was the whole time I was living three lives. I was living Megan Kell's birthday with family friends, but I was also living Princess Rose's wedding, and coronation. And the third life was the strangest, because I hadn't lived it before, and I was never physically present. I was living what Lance was doing.

I've decided that these rings are really not all they're cracked up to be. Living two lives is not fun, not fun at all. But living three, do you know how confusing that is? I'm thinking of going catatonic, don't you think it would make life easier?

Of course I knew what was coming. Towards the end of the night I suddenly got chills down my spine.

Well the end of Megan Kell's birthday at least, I had another life still going full tilt. But ignore that. I'm talking about the modern life, the other one has been relegated to an interesting diversion, a _very_ interesting diversion.

I had been putting things away thinking maybe nothing would happen. Well that was just before I heard the screaming. That tends to be a sure fire way to know when your enemies are attacking you. So I climbed out the window (I did get my dad to make it bigger by the way) and transformed. Of course I kind of found myself is something that is a cross between the eternal outfit, and my princess outfit. I o course knew exactly who I was, but I don't think anyone else would have figured out that I was Imperial Sailor Rose. I mean who would have thought of imperial anyway.

Then I got distracted, I think my transforming woke Lance up, because suddenly he was up to something, but I didn't have time to pay attention and try to figure out what. Instead I simply jumped off the ledge outside my window telling Mico to wake the other scouts as I did.

Great, I'm gonna get my butt beat again. Figures.

Well, at least I thought I was.

This was another of those huge slimy vine-thingies. But this one brought friends. It also brought a weird rock-thingy, and a green thing that smelled like mold, so I'm going to call it the moldy-thingy.

The slime thing it turns out is the weakest of the bunch, oh fun. Good thing is that because of this awesomeness power boost, I could hold the stupid thing off. Best part was I only got partially thrashed by the two stronger things. It also turns out that the less disgusting you are, the stronger. Meaning that the rock thing was stronger than the mold thing. But that's fine with me, because I knew that if it was just one of the three I could probably have beaten it with my power boost as Imperial Sailor Rose.

I was starting get tired after about half an hour of this, so I accidentally let my concentration wander, but the smartest move. Because you see my last life was going something I didn't really want to see. Just in case you're wondering why after half an hour I got hit by the rock thing, really hard. I'm pretty sure I passed out because, suddenly A really cute guy was standing over me.

He was wearing gold and silver, and he was shining in the streetlights. If I was a romantic, I most likely would have changed that to moonlight, but it was cloudy, and there was no moon.

But anyway he was in silver plate armor, with gold mail, and golden gauntlets. The entire chest piece was covered with swirling gold lines, but in the center of the chest was what looked distinctly like a crown. It was then that I noticed that he wasn't wearing a helm, but rather a half mask covered his face. Then there was the modest gold and silver braid of metal on his head. And yes that was modest, because he would be wearing some pompous head piece which was overly large otherwise.

But he had light downy brown hair and fairly tanned skin. This must be Lan in this lifetime. I mean who else would come to my rescue wearing a rose on his chest, and a crown on his head.

"You're a bit late," I said sitting up carefully. My head hurt really bad. Good thing was that my last life was finished for now, and sleeping.

"Rose," He said in relief turning to look at me. It was Lan, the turquoise eyes proved it.

"So, um Lan, why so late. This is the second time I got my butt beat," I was still rubbing my head. Lan looked at me curiously.

"Didn't you know where I was? I knew you would be here, at this time, so I timed it. I would have been here sooner, but I kind of fell asleep on watch. It wasn't until my, um, well, watch actually went off did I realize that I was late," Lan explained. I suddenly realized something I had never put in any of my stories.

When you come face to face with the reincarnation of you husband from your last life, it's really bad to have your past life suddenly talking in your head.

I you're wondering why I'm saying this, well it's because Rose was suddenly in my head telling me to kiss him. Which, according to Rose, was perfectly fine because I've already done much more with him in a past life. And because it's so hard to even try to argue with a voice in you head I reached up and kissed him.

It was a very good kiss too. But I think I'm only saying that because it was first kiss. But I don't think it would have been as good a kiss even I it were my twentieth, if it hadn't been Lan.

I'm pretty sure it wasn't just my enjoyment of the moment which stretched my perception o time. I think it was more along the lines of being just a really long kiss. When we came up for air (both of us were panting) we found all the scouts looking down at us.

"Suuure, you don't have a boyfriend," Corey said into the awkward silence.

"Well technically I don't. It's more along the lines of a love from a past life, and a crazy woman talking in my mind," I said stretching out of Lan's hold. At some point he had drawn me really tightly against his chest, he let go only reluctantly.

"Crazy woman?" Hannah said that one.

"Yes, I believe it was Rose,"

"Your past life is talking to you?" All eyes turned on Chibi-Usa. Innocent Chibi-Usa, who has never had to listen to past life which makes her doubt her sanity.

"Yes, it happens sometimes, how do you thin I come up with my stories which are so accurate to my past life? It used to be just my dreams, but now Rose has decided to invade my entire life, leaving me no freedom at all," I told her still partially in Lan's arms.

"Who are you?" Mars asked suspiciously, oh yeah she was here too wasn't she.

"Well, I can only tell you who Rose knows me as, because it may endanger all of you even more if I were to tell you who I am in this life. But Rose knows me as Lan, Elle's half brother, and Rose's husband," Lan said in that beautiful voice of his. It wasn't really all that deep, but it was still perfect in my mind.

"But, isn't Elle Rose's sister?" That was Mercury, she looked nervous.

"Elle is my half sister, Lan is her half brother, there's no family relationship between Rose and Lan until they get married," I told them quietly. I think I liked being up against the metal of Lan's armor, It wasn't as uncomfortable as you might think. The metal wasn't even cold after the time I spent crushed up against it.

"That's one screwed up family you know," Osseus commented, "I mean I know you've told me Lan and Rose aren't related at all, but it still bugs me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know Hannah-chan," I said jokingly.

Suddenly Lan withdrew his arms from around me. I turned around in shock. Lan had a strange look on his face. He looked at Osseus with a weird look on his face. I think it was a cross between disbelief, and complete shock.

"What's wrong?"

"Hannah? Hannah Richardson? In class 4-A?" I think the shock was on all our faces.

"How do you know that?" Wow, all of us in unison. I turned to look at the girls, and when I turned back Lan was gone.

"Well that sucks," I muttered quietly.

"You seem down today, Princess," Lance said the next day at lunch time. Lance had decided that he wasn't going to die from sitting with us at lunch apparently.

"Yes, well I saw Lan last night," I said with a sigh.

"Your prince?"

"Well I suppose, although he's not really royalty until he married me in our last lives," I shoved my sandwich over towards lance, I wasn't hungry. I wish he could have at least told me who he really was.

"If you say so, but you should eat," Lance set my sandwich back onto my lap I looked over to him, and then reached into my ring. The bond wasn't as strong as it was yesterday, but I could still connect with Lance, or with my last life.

I felt Lance's concern for me. So I picked up the sandwich and bit into it. I wonder what would happen to me if I dove too deeply into my stored magic in the ring. I think I might get stuck in it. But since it would take diving really deeply into the magic to find out if I knew in my last life, I let it at what I knew. Better not to kill myself.

"Thank you Princess," lance said quietly when I took a second bite of my sandwich.

"Of course Lance, you were right. I should eat. If I don't how will I figure out this puzzle in front of me?" I asked rhetorically. At that point Hannah and Usagi came to join us, so I stopped talking.

Hannah of course didn't understand the connection. She didn't even know the proper words to swear fealty in Meapation, but then again she had no reason to know. Just like she had no reason to understand the unique bond which mages formed between the ruler, and those who have sworn fealty. Well that was something any fool in Meapation knew, The problem was that not even the Queen of Osseus bothered to find out about it. I mean how stupid is that?

Usagi would understand it even less. The Moon Kingdom had used a completely separate system, which has no relation to the fealty system. So to try and explain it to her would just confuse her and leave me feeling stupid for not even being able to explain such a simple thing to her.

So either way talking about the connection (and the act that I could sometimes sense Lance's thoughts as well as general emotions) was just too much trouble with these two.

"So what are you talking about?' Usagi asked eagerly.

"Lance was just making me eat. I really want to find Lan, so I've been a bit depressed, Lance noticed (it is his duty to notice) and made me eat my sandwich," I told them taking a very large bite of my sandwich.

"Stupid Mami, you shouldn't obsess about Lan so much even if he was your love in another life," Usagi said trying to sound sage.

"Yes, this from the woman who mooned after Tuxedo Mask long before she knew he was Mamoru," Ami said coming up. How do these people keep appearing just in time to say something witty huh?

"Yes, well we can stop repeating my past stupidness, and focus on my current wisdom," Usagi said haughtily. I took another bite of sandwich and wished I had popcorn, because then I could do a really good anime scene.

"Well your use of the word 'stupidness' proves your lack of wisdom, Or at least your lack of knowledge," Ami pointed out. I hadn't known that 'stupidness' wasn't a word. Although it was in Japanese, so maybe that was why I figured it was a word, I never claimed to have perfect Japanese.

"Well whatever," Usagi looked annoyed, but knew that Ami was smarter than she was ever going to be. Or at least I hope that's what was going through her head, otherwise, we might have problems.

"Hey Lance, You know you don't have to walk me home. People might start to get the wrong idea," I told him as we walked down the street towards the subway station. We had gone to the café after school, and taken Lance with us, he had insisted on taking me home.

"Well if they do, then everything will be all that simpler, then no one will wonder why I've started hanging out with you girls all of the sudden," Lance answered smoothly.

"So, you want to pretend to be my boyfriend, so that people won't look at you strangely?" I was a little annoyed with him. But I don't think it would be that horrible, I mean it wouldn't kill me.

"No, I would do it to protect you from suspicious looks, and to protect your life," Lance said quietly. So he wasn't quite as annoying as I thought then.

"Well, it wouldn't kill us to pretend," I said slowly.

"Yes, and it might kill you not to," Lance said in a very quiet voice. I'm not even positive I heard him say it, but I think I did.

"Well then it's settled isn't it," I said ending the conversation. Lance leaned over a little and grabbed my dangling hand as it brushed past him.

I'm starting to think I'm going crazy. Well I'm starting to think it again.

First of all, I'm starting to hear voices. According to some people that's the first sign of madness. And I did say voices, not just one. Those voices would be Rose, of course, but also what I've begun to think of as the little angel and devil, who always state the two sides of every situation. I think you may know what I'm talking about. In every situation I'm in the angel will tell me the good side of things, and the devil the bad.

The second thing is that I'm hallucinating. I keep seeing people out of the corner of my eye, but when I turn I find no one there. But of the hallucinations the more troubling was that when I looked at Lance I saw other people overlaying him. Sometimes it was Lan in his shining armor, and other times it was people I hadn't seen before, and yet I felt I knew them.

Third is the fact that I'm suddenly having visions in my sleep. Or at least I'm pretty sure they're visions. They're like the nightmares I've had, but they're clearer, and stronger. They stay in my mind even better than the nightmares. Some of these are just as scary as the nightmares, others are pleasant, and nice. I think some of the dreams may have been of my past lives (seeing as at least one of them featured a scantily clad Lan, of course that also might have just been fantasy, or the link I can still feel), and some I think may be of future lives (something about a girl with really long hair living in a world of high technology).

Of course all this has happened in the last week, while I've been pretending to be going out with Lance. You should have seen the look on the girls' faces when they found out we were 'going out'. Usagi's first reaction was to berate me apparently she thinks that if you had a love in the last life, and you know where they are in your current life you should chase after them at all costs and never betray them.

I calmed her down and attempted to explain to her that I didn't actually know where Lan was, and that this was perfectly fine. I'm pretty sure she doesn't believe me.

"Why's Usagi glaring at us?" Lance asked me a few days after Usagi and I argued about the whole Lance and me pretending to be going out thing.

"She's mad at me," I answered grabbing up Lances hand and starting to inspect it His nails were very ragged.

"Why? And why do I have a feeling it's all my fault?" Lance was watching my downturned head; at least I'm pretty sure that's what I saw through my bangs.

"Because she thinks I'm not being faithful to Lan, because I'm pretending to go out with you. Usagi also thinks I'm too good at pretending," I think it might have been fun to his expression, but I still didn't look up, it might have provoked him.

"What? I was right? This is all my fault? I didn't think it would hurt since you have no idea who Lan is right now, only that you think that he'll come and save you again if you're in danger. Please, if this is wrong please don't stay with me, go find Lan. Work harder to find your love of your lives," Lance spilled all this out in a breathless manner. It was here that I made a mistake.

I looked up at his face.

He leaned in and kissed me. I was pretty shocked. I mean who wouldn't be surprised when your pretend boyfriend kisses you after saying that you should stop pretending to go out with him and find the love that has followed you through multiple lives.

"What?" I looked up at him completely shocked when he pulled his lips from mine. The good thing about this kiss? It was almost as good as Lan's.

"I'm sorry; I really shouldn't have done that. That was completely wrong, not at all what I had meant to do, I promise. I really mean it, you should find Lan, but I didn't want to let you go without giving you a good-bye kiss," Lance was still babbling. But I think this babbling Lance is more comfortable to be with than the cold serious one I had always dealt with before this.

"It's okay, I understand, I think. But, I think my search for Lan can wait. In fact I'm not even sure if there is a way to find him without getting myself into extreme danger, like on my birthday," I told him calmly as I edged away from him a little bit.

"So today's the last day of the school year, huh?" Lance said clearly trying to change the conversation.

"Yeah, I guess we won't be seeing each other much for awhile," I was truly sorry about this. Lance was such a nice guy.

"I know where you live, and I have you number programmed into my cell phone. I'll call you, and we can make a date for next week. Maybe we could go somewhere," I'm not even sure exactly why my heart was thumping and warm as he said this. I don't know.

"What did you do?" Usagi asked me in extreme distress.

"Nothing, I did nothing,"

"Yes, you did, I know you did something. Why did you let him kiss you?" Usagi was basically wailing at this point I'd like to point out at this…well point.

"I was simply surprised that's all, It isn't that big a deal," I told her quietly.

"Not a big deal? Not a big deal!?" I swear this girl was going into hysterics. I don't think she is exactly like the how introduced her, or maybe it's just the year or so that I've never seen (because nothing was happening) after they defeated Galaxia. But this girl is defiantly stressed.

"Hush, I think-" I started before I was forced to the ground in pain. Great, the perfect moment for evil forces to attack and attempt to kill me. Wonderful.

"Mami? Mami what's wrong? I nev…" It was at about this point that the pain got to the point of impairing both hearing and eyesight. At least I think it was the pain. But it might have been the attack was meant to do that.

Have you ever had so much pain that you are simply paralyzed? I mean physically incapable of moving, and completely unaware of everything around you? In so much pain that not even your brain can move? I you have then you might have an idea of what this pain was like. But if you haven't this idea will have you laughing at what you believe to be a huge exaggeration but I will tell you right now, I'm not exaggerating.

Now the pain went on for a really long time, but when it stopped it was sudden and complete. There was no pain at all. The bad part, I still couldn't see, or hear. Movement was sluggish and gave me that pins and needle feeling, like when your foot falls asleep. No pain, but everything was numb, sort of.

I reached out with my hand, it felt like it was crawling with small insects, which made me want to shake it like crazy. Which was, of course, outside of my current range of movement. I groped around quietly trying to find something. And I did. I think it was some king of metal. I grabbed onto it tightly, it was an anchor in the darkness and silence. I'm not sure if it was just really quiet, and really dark, or if I was deaf and blind, but I really hoped it was the former rather than the latter.

The metal shifted until suddenly something picked me up. It felt like arms. So it likely was. Of course because it felt like metal it could have been a machine, but I really don't know.

Whatever was holding me started moving, and I couldn't hear anything. To my dismay I was forced to accept the fact that the latter (that I was deaf and blind) may have been the correct answer.

"Who are you," I whispered quietly. Or at least I think I said it. I might not have. Because I couldn't hear it. I pressed up against whatever was holding me to find more metal. I lifted a faintly numb hand and traced it upwards, trying to figure out what it was that was holding me.

The first thing I noticed was the designs. There were grooves cut in swirling patterns all over the thing. Higher up there was something more dense, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Even higher there were several pieces of metal joined together with leather and chain. But above that was skin.

Then I realized what it was. It was Lan, Lan was carrying me somewhere. If he heard me, he probably responded. If he had, I couldn't hear him. I should say something, or do something to make him understand that I couldn't see or hear.

"Lan? I can't see, and I can't hear, so understand?" I didn't say it very loudly, but I raised my hand to his face, and touched his lips, like I saw in some movie (I can't remember what it was). His lips were moving but I couldn't figure out if he was trying to respond to me, or I he was trying to talk to someone else, I didn't know if there was someone else around to talk to.

A gloved hand touched my arm, the one which was trapped between my side, and Lan's arm. I reached up with my not trapped hand, and felt upwards. I couldn't feel the end of the glove, so it was most likely a scout. I dropped my hand back, and lay back in Lan's arms. Everything was so messed up.

We had stopped moving and there were people touching my arms, and sides, and prodding here and there. I don't know who they were, or what they were doing, but from the cold plastic eel of the hands I would guess they were doctors examining me, trying to figure out what was wrong with me.

I was singing inanely. I bet they were starting to think I had gone crazy, but I liked singing little snippets of song better than trying to figure out what they could be saying about me.

What I noticed the most was that Lan had put me in the arms of the scout with the comforting hand. Then I think he left. The scout had brought me here, and then she left too. Now I was alone, and I wasn't liking it. Hence the inane singing.

The prodding stopped, but I didn't stop singing. The worst part of all this was that I couldn't even hear myself to tell if I was even hitting the pitch correctly. And I was singing a song that sounds horrible if you don't get the pitch right. Oh well I was making even more deaf people in the world.

Now they were pulling at my eyelids, and sticking things in my ears. I pulled away.

"I can't see, and I can't hear Can't you be fine with that?" I think I said it. I hope I did. Because if I didn't the prodding would start again soon.

A hand touched my shoulder. I reach up and felt upwards on the arm. It was a girl (not enough hair on the arm), when I reached the shoulders I felt upwards on the head. Odangos, Usagi.

"Usagi, hello," I smiled a bit and asked, "Can you get me out of here? Just nod or shake your head, I can feel it." Usagi nodded. I smiled and said, "lead the way."

She did lead the way. She held onto my shoulder and pushed me along, pulling to the left or right when she needed me to turn a corner. Before I knew it I could feel wind, a was a very slight breeze. But it was better than the smell of antiseptic.

Someone hugged me all of the sudden. I stiffened at the feel. I really had no warning at all. I reached up and felt from who it was. Short hair, lightly muscled arms and chest, It was Lance. He must have been told about what had happened. What a sweet fake boyfriend. Or maybe at this point it was real.

"Are the girls here? Shake or nod your head," I told him. He nodded.

"Good, Is Corey here?" Another nod, "Can you bring her here or me?" Another nod, then he let go of me.

I stood in my world of silence for a moment before a hand touched my arm.

"Corey? Were you the comforting hand?" I asked reaching up and touching the side of her face. She shook her head. "Who was it?" Corey took my hand and pulled me a bit to the let and forward and put my hand on someone's face. I felt to the hair, and was surprised to find it was very short. It wasn't up or anything. And the person was taller than me. All this means it must have been Haruka. I was surprised, I didn't think he liked me.

"Thank you, Haruka-san," I said quietly.

Then I turned in a brief circle, "Will someone take me home?"

I pair of hand grabbed mine. This person was shorter than me, by about a head. I pulled one hand from the grasp and felt this person's head, it was my little brother. I smiled and let him lead me.

I've been led to and from wherever I need to go by an assortment of my friends. I even got that date with Lance. But what worries me is that I can some times here something. I think it may be voices, or maybe it's something else. And sometimes I can see blurry images. I'm not sure how it works. But I've found that this happens the most often when I'm with Lance, Corey, and Hannah. So I often invite them all to come with me.

I'm not sure how to explain why I want them all to be with me, so I don't. Haruka is also there a lot. I'm not sure why she suddenly likes me, but I'm not going to push her away. Mico seems to be talking into my mind a lot. So I'm not in complete silence anymore.

All in all I think I'm doing okay for someone who has no idea how she lost her eyesight, and hearing. And for someone who lost them suddenly when they were in their teens.

_Someone is speaking about you in here._ Mico informed me one day when the entire group had gathered in Rei's temple.

_What are they saying? Can you play it to me mind-to-mind?_ I asked curious. They didn't talk about me often, sometimes they would talk to me, as if I could still hear them.

_I will replay the scene for you._ Mico said quietly before doing exactly that. I could suddenly see the room perfectly, as if I hadn't lost my sight.

_Usagi was saying, "You should be nicer to her. She can't see, or hear because she was attacked by that enemy. Mico won't tell us anything. And Mami doesn't know it when we ask her what happened."_

"_Yes, but I don't think we should be doting on her like this. I don't think it's necessary. Didn't Corey say it sometimes seemed like she as trying to focus on something? Doesn't that mean that she's getting better?" I should have known that it was Rei Usagi was trying to defend me against._

"_Leave her alone. She couldn't tell I was Lan when he picked her up. She looked strait up at him and started tracing her hands up his armor, as if she was blind. This is the guy she's in love with. I she couldn't recognize him what luck do we have of her faking it?" Haruka asked a little sadly._

"_I know she isn't faking it. She's just like this in my future. I hope we can heal her soon. But it will take her transforming because she's in danger, and her court combining their magic purposely to heal her. That's why they failed the first time. But we can't heal her yet She's still missing the crucial element of the Mistress. She is necessary to the healing. Mistress is a very strong mage. It will take all her magic to heal Mommy, and to save the world in doing so," This was a cute girl. She had stick strait black hair and crystal blue eyes._

"Mommy? Mico?" I said out loud at that point.

_Sorry. I failed to mention our newest time traveler. She says she is your daughter._

"but if I'm like this in the future, then how can I be her mom?" I asked Mico quietly.

_I think I must show you what they are saying._

"_What was that? I thought she was deaf," Chibi-Usa said in shock._

"_I told you she was faking us!" Rei cried angrily._

"_no, she's not. Do you see the way she's not listening to us? She's not shifting towards the speaker, it's like she's watching TV or something. What is she doing?" Usagi was my defender again._

"_Mommy? Is Mico showing you this?" The little girl asked. The entire room went silent and turned to me._

"Yes, Mico is showing me. I discovered that he can show me what's going on if I ask him to. But when no one is talking about me I don't bother. Instead I try to see myself. When I'm with Hannah, Corey, and Lance (all three) I can sometimes see blurry shapes, and I can hear indistinct sounds," I told them still staring off into blackness. My silent world wasn't even disturbed by my voice.

"_See, I told you! She needs her court!" The little girl cried in triumph, "Mommy I'm Emma. You don't know me yet."_

"_Don't bother, she's not focusing like before," Ami said quietly as she pulled out the Mercury computer._

"_yes she is!" Emma cried pointing at me. "She looks like she's watching TV. I know that look. I've seen it more times than any of you. In fact she's like that more than half the time. Well when I come from she is. Daddy says he likes that look because it means she's paying attention to us," Emma explained indignantly._

"Who is your daddy?" I asked quietly.

"_See I told you she was paying attention to us," Emma was triumphant._

"Emma, who?"

"_Oh right! Well he's Lan I guess. You always call him that. And I don't really ever see anyone but you and daddy, so I guess that's his name," Emma said looking a little confused._

"you don't know for certain?"

"_No, and I haven't seen him since I got here, so I guess you haven't met daddy yet," Emma looked disappointed at this. _

"I have met Lan. Both in my last life and his reincarnation has protected me in this life," I told her quietly, "I'm tired, I'm going to take a nap okay?" I said gently.

I wasn't really going to take a nap. I was going to relive part of my last life, when I could see and hear and touch Lan. When he was always there for me. I missed that.

_I've been busy all day. I think I'll go find Elle. She's sure to make me feel better, seeing as no one else is likely to do so right now. Lan could, but he's doing a census of the country. Lan's been protecting me as normal. Has he already forgotten that I fought the Queendom of Six, Ka, and Drakul just as fiercely as he did when we were younger?_

"_Elle! I don't feel good toady!" I called out and rushed into my little sister as I ran into Elle's library where she spends a lot of her time._

"_Poor Rose, do you want to lie down again? Or did you just want me to be nice to you?" Elle asked petting my hair._

"_Both," I whined piteously._

"_Poor baby," Elle murmured as she led me to one of her couches. This on had an armrest on only one side. So Elle propped me up in it when I decided that I didn't feel like dealing with other people right then._

"_Thank you Elle. Little sister why don't you find yourself a nice guy? Guys are better than books, take it from me," I told her with a wicked smile. _

"_Yes, well there aren't any men who are as strong as me, nor are there any men who are as smart as you Rose. Because you know quite well that you're smarter than me despite the way you keep professing that you hate books," Elle was blushing. I loved it when I made my sweet little sister blush._

"_I bet I could find one. Do you want me to? I won't even use any politics when deciding for you," I offered smoothing my dress over my legs._

"_Fine, but don't offer for me. Show him to me, then let me decide on my own whether or not I like this guy," Elle said with a sigh. I already knew the perfect guy. He blew me away and left me in a pile of dust with his intelligence, plus he was one of the nation's best swordsmen. I bet Lord Michael would be perfect or my picky little sister. Plus he has large holdings and solid trade with the people of Christanium to the South. Truly the perfect guy for my little sister. Not for me of course, but I want something different in men than Elle. Plus I have Lan._

"_Lord Michael," I said in triumph. Elle had met him once or twice. They got along fine._

"_Why him?" Elle was suspicious, she knew about Michael's holdings in the South._

"_He's way smarter than me, he's the only person other than Lan who can ever make me feel stupid. He's the kingdom's second best swordsman, and he was very courageous in tending his father's lands during the ar. He is a year or so older than you, but still that's not so big a difference, not any more than that between Lan and me," I told her stating most of the reasons I chose him._

"_Plus he has a strong trade agreement with Christanium, who have decided they won't talk to you anymore. What did you do to Queen Christa anyway?" Elle asked genuinely curious._

"_I told her that my trees were prettier than hers," I muttered and sunk farther into Elle's chair._

"_You really should stop doing stu-"_

Pain split through my skull cutting me off from my memories. It was as paralyzing as before. But I managed to get out a scream before I lost control of my voice again.

"_What's happened now?"_

"_Why was she screaming?" _

"_Mami? Mami! Are you al right?"_

"_Megan! Megan wakeup,"_

"_Rose, wake up,"_

The last voice of my dream was the best. It was Lan. Flickered open eyes to find everything was still blank and empty. I reached out and found a small head with overly thin hair curled against my side Curled around her body was someone in plate armor. I could only be Lan. He rested his head on my chest, while the little girl rested her head against my stomach.

"Is she awake then? Even if she is, let's not wake Lan or Emma yet. I think they were panicked when they heard her scream," It was Usagi's voice. I could hear again! I wonder why I can hear again?

"Rose?" I could barely hear Lan's quietly murmur.

"Lan," I leaned down and kissed his head. I think it was the back of his head.

Lan turned his head towards mine. I couldn't see him, but I felt him turn his head.

"You can hear me again?" He was still speaking quietly. I don't think he wanted to wake Emma.

"Yes, but I can't see," I barely breathed the words. It hurt that I couldn't see him. I wanted to see the clear eyes of my memories. I wanted to see the way the sun shone on his silky hair. The way memories told me everything frustrated me to no end.

"if you can hear, then sight will return as well," Lan touched my cheek gently and brushed away the tear that was making it's way down my face.

"Not without such terrible pain, such horrible pain," I curled my body around his head, doing my best not to bump Emma awake.

I failed.

"Daddy, is Mommy awake?" Emma asked in an excited (though trying to be quiet) voice. She sat up, and I lost sense of her except through the rustle her dress was making.

"She can hear you," Lan said gently as he too sat up, and I lost my 'view' of him too.

"What?! Mommy you can hear me?" Emma sounded excited as I sat up.

"Yes, I can hear you," I smiled grimly. I could only visualize this little girl by brief glimpses with Mico. I had no memory of her to draw on.

Emma practically tackled me to the ground. I Lan hadn't been sitting with his hand partially on my back, then I think I might have fallen over.

I hugged the little girl tight. She couldn't be any older than seven or eight years old. I wasn't even sure she was that old. I think I needed the comfort of Emma as much as Emma needed the comfort she found in my hug.

"So Emma you want to borrow Luna-P now?" Chibi-Usa's voice came from behind me somewhere.

"Yes please!"

"Megan's home!" Brian called out as Lan, Emma, and I walked through the door.

"Is she okay?" My mom asked anxiously as I heard her rushing through hallways to get to the front hallway. Emma's dress rustled as she shifted Luna-P in her arms.

"yeah, she's fine. One of her friends and some little girl brought her home today," Brian said happily.

"Good, good," My mom sounded so relieved. How hard had it been for her these last few weeks?

I heard Luna-P started making a whirring noise at the same time I heard my mom's footsteps hit the tile of the front hallway.

"oh Emma! I didn't know you were coming!" My mom pulled Emma into a hug with much dress rustling and squeaking about how tight the hug was on Emma's part.

"You'll have to stay in Megan's room with her, but I'm sure you'll be fine, what with the fact that she mostly sits like she's comatose lately," I furrowed my brow at my mom's words. We had enough rooms for her to have on those.

"That's fine!" Emma must have escaped my mom's hug because she sounded fine now.

"What with Sean and Lauren both home because of Megan's condition, well we're a little short on space," My eyes widened at these words. I turned and rushed up where I knew the stairs were. I went all the way up to the room I knew was set up for Lauren when she was home. I knew I was right when I heard the country music. Why hadn't Mico told me? Mico was being oddly lapse on what was going on, what else had I missed?

"Lauren!" I cried out flinging the door open. I couldn't see her, but I heard her turn to look at the door. I rushed into the room. I banged my leg on the bed, then on Lauren's suitcase. But I did make it to her desk and grabbed her into a hug.

"Megan, what is it? How did you know I was here?" Lauren's voice sounded so soft compared to normal.

"I'm so happy you're here Lauren, I'm so happy," I'm pretty sure I was sobbing at this point. She had promised to never come here, but here she is! My big sister.

"It's okay, Meg, I'm here,"


	7. Chapter 6

Act II, Chapter III

The Missing History

"Mami, can you tell me what the answer to this problem is?" Sensei asked me first thing on the first day back from Summer Break.

"I'm sorry, you must not have been told. Over Summer Break I lost my sense of sight, and much more briefly my sense of hearing," I told her staring straight ahead. Which was towards the board, but I didn't know where on the board the problem was, or what the problem was in the first place.

"Is, is that true?" Sensei sounded so incredulous.

"Yes, she's quite blind Sensei," Haruka said from across the room. She was still defending me.

"I can also attest to that, It was very hard to communicate with her for two weeks because she couldn't hear us, or see us," Lance added.

"Well…I…Lance will you answer the problem then?" Sensei seemed at a loss or words at hearing that one of her students had suddenly gone blind. I would think I should be the one in a panic, if I'm not upset about the whole no sight thing, then why should my teacher be?

"The answer is 5xy over 3x10 ," Lance sounded so sure of himself. I slipped my hand over and touched his knee. And smiled over at him, even though I wasn't sure he was looking at me.

The rest of the day was very smooth. No one called on me, and I didn't have to explain that I was blind to anyone else. Then I waited by the gate for Lan and Emma. Lan told me that he was going to dress in normal clothes (except for when he was actively saving my life) so that he could protect me while I couldn't protect myself. And since Emma professed (over and over) to being our daughter he had decided to take care of her too.

"Mami? What happened to you?" Naru asked me as soon as I got to the gate, I jumped because I hadn't heard her coming.

"I don't know It was after school on the last day of the term I was suddenly struck by this extreme pain. I passed out and when I came back to I couldn't see or hear anyone. Then someone picked me up and carried me somewhere. Then I got passed off to a really strong woman (she wasn't really muscular though), and she carried me to the hospital. I was told after I regain my hearing that it was a sailor scout who took me to the hospital. So the first person must have been a friend of theirs. But I spent a couple of weeks without being able to really communicate with anyone. Then I was struck by that really bad pain again and when I woke up I could hear again. So I'm hoping my eyesight will come back sometime too," I explained everything. Well everything that wasn't a huge secret at least.

"Mami?" It was Lan's voice. I turned towards it with a smile on my face.

"Lan! You came. I was starting to worry you had forgotten me. Is Emma there?" I asked cheerily.

"yep, I'm here! Who are you?" Emma asked Naru.

"My name is Naru, I'm in classes with Mami. I was jut wondering what had happened, she was fine before Summer,"

"Yes, Usagi bullied me into picking her up and carrying her as far as I could. That's how I met Mami. But Sailor Uranus found me as I was carrying her to the hospital and took her the rest of the way. I followed behind and waited for her to be well enough to go home, so I could help her get wherever she needed to go. But Usagi showed up and helped her to get home without my assistance," Lan explained calmly.

"really? You met her because she had passed out from immeasurable pain, which was so horrible she lost multiple senses? That's a pretty cool story!" Naru seemed to excited about the tragedy my life has turned out to be.

"She told you the whole story? She doesn't usually tell the whole story. What are you doing?" I could hear the suspicion in his voice.

"Nothing," I said dragging out the syllables, "Em-chan, you want to get home right?" I asked holding out my hand. Emma grabbed it enthusiastically and we started off without Lan.

I heard him saying hurried goodbyes and apologies before rushing up to meet us. I smiled as Lan grabbed my other hand and laced his fingers through mine.

"So what are you really doing?" Lan asked as we walked towards my house. Lan had managed to turn up in the mornings, and whenever else I needed him. So he had learned the way pretty well.

"I was telling the second biggest gossip in the school as much of what happened as anyone who isn't you, Emma, or one of the scouts can know. That way everyone will think that what I told her was everything, and there isn't anything else to find out. If it gets to Umino then everyone will assume that that's complete fact, and that nothing is left out. He's very thorough," I said lifting Emma up onto my hip. She' very small and light I've discovered. So she's easy to carry around. Emma hugged me around my neck.

"oh, so you think by telling only the truth, but only parts of the truth, then no one will question the rest of it, and no one will find out the parts you don't want anyone to know?" Lan asked trying to confirm my plan.

"Exactly,"

"Crazy,"

"of course I am," I joked gently. Lan pulled his arm around my waist so I wouldn't bump into anything. But I liked it just because it was Lan.

Mico started beeping incessantly soon thereafter. I set Emma down, and felt through my purse until I found him. When I opened him I could feel him sending up a hologram.

"What's he showing you?" I asked quietly. I really needed to know, but I couldn't see for myself.

"It's a map, of Tokyo," Lan said touching my arm.

"What's up then Mico?" I asked holding my hand open, and Mico resting on it.

"A power is stirring directly below your position. I would advise transforming, and using me as your eyes. If possible send a message to the other scouts advising your position, and your current plan of attack," Mico told me in his cute little boy voice.

"Yes, I supposed that's what I will do. Can you send the message to the girls? I'll transform then," I said and closed Mico's screen. I reached into the black void in front of me, and my scepter fell into my hand.

"Ruby Rose Transformation!!" I cried and lifted my arm above my head. I felt something surround me shading me from the sun. I think it might have been a rose bud. I didn't move, but I knew I was in a simple leotard a few seconds later. Ribbons wound around me forming fingerless gloves, tall socks, short boots, a choker, and the skirt that practically hung off me. But somehow didn't.

I opened Mico's screen and Mico switched on my 'eyes'.

_Emma and Lan were staring at me in surprise. I smiled at them over Mico's screen, which was showing me exactly what I was seeing anyway._

"_Rose?" Lan asked in an undertone._

"_of course it's me," I laughed a little at Lan's tone of disbelief._

"_Mamma?" Emma sounded just as disbelieving._

"_Of course! Lan, get Emma to my house before you come back to save me, okay?" I smiled and looked right into Lan's face. He looked really good in his modern day clothes._

_I turned and ran off in the direction Mico was leading me in. It turned out he was leading me to a drain pipe, so I could climb down, and get to whatever it was we were sensing._

"_To the left and down to the fifth junction, then turn right, and take another right so that we can come at it from an angle it won't expect," Mico instructed at the bottom. I turned to the left and followed the slimy, mildewy tunnel down a ways. The walls were an uninterrupted fuzzy green. I was walking through rivers of long stagnant water._

_At the first junction the tunnel branched in three ways, but I kept forward, as Mico told me. _

_I could actually see for the first time in a long time, and this is what I get? Slimy tunnels and smelly water. I guess whatever controls fate dislikes me. I mean making me blind in the first place should have been enough of a signal, but somehow it wasn't._

_Several junctions later I could feel some kind of tingling along my skin. It wasn't really like before I'm attacked by something But the feeling of power is the same._

_I took the first right just like Mico told me, even though I could tell I was getting a little too close to that power. It felt warm. But I'm sure it should have been a cold feeling, or at least something less comforting, less familiar. I'm pretty sure it was just trying to distract me, make me less on guard._

_At the second right I noticed that the tunnels were less slimy, and the ground was drier. There was a perfume-like smell starting to perforate the tunnels. I wasn't following Mico's directions at this point (even though he was practically yelling at me where to go), instead I was following my sense of that warm tingling power._

"_Princess? Have you come to find me?" A soft voice asked as I stepped into a large room, lit from all around by candles, big and small, and flashlights in all varying intensities._

"_Who are you?" The woman was in a shadowy part of the room, so even with all of Mico's help I couldn't see much of her._

"_I'm surprised you couldn't tell from the sense of my presence. I'm Malia," She said stepping out of her shadowy corner. She had long wavy brown black hair, and brown eyes flecked with vivid violet. She was about my height, and didn't look much older than me. But her clothes looked suspiciously like the dress found among war mages of Meapation (a top that only covers the front of her chest, and a pair of tight pants going only to just past her knees, and a skirt slit on both sides all the way up to her hips. She had a thick belt which hung from above the hip on the right and just below it on the left. A dagger was hung on the right side, and a sword on the left.)._

"_The Immortal?" I asked in disbelief, this seemed too unlikely. Malia was a character I created to be a wise advisor to all the reigning queens of Meapation, all the way from the first Rose to the last reigning queen, at the end of the world._

"_Of course, whatever other Malia do you know of?" She asked in her primly feminine voice._

"_None I suppose, but why are you hiding out here? Who are you in this life?"_

"_My life as the mage Malia was so much stronger than whatever life I had here, that when my powers awoke, I lost the memories I had of this life," Malia told me._

"_But I must know you, I've known all the others, both in the last life, and in this one," I told her quietly._

"_If you do, I doubt you will be able to figure it out, because I awoke with my powers near here, and I couldn't remember a thing after the end of our world, I remember how I could do nothing to stop them, and the queen of that time was killed, and her protector mage's power was taken, and so her life," Malia said in a quietly intent voice._

"_Wait what? Is our world still there?" I asked excitedly._

"_No, it was destroyed by an unknown power we didn't see until it was to late. All of our powers in this life began to awaken as our world ended. Well as far as I can tell," Malia explained._

"_But that should have been a year ago, or more," My voice was soft._

"_If our powers had come in faster than they did, then it would have killed us. You got powers as a 'Sailor Scout' before you awoke as Princess Rose. But the rest of us awoke as who we were in Meapation, before we awoke to our powers here. You and I were stronger, and so the gods gave us more to deal with. I lost my memory, and from the way you orient yourself, you lost your sight," Malia said quietly._

"_But why are you hiding here?" _

"_This is where I awoke," Malia answered._

"_When did you awake here?" My voice was quieter than Malia's even._

"_A few hours ago,"_

"_Then that's why Mico didn't tell me about you until just a little while ago. Why don't you come with me? You can stay at my house. We have plenty of space, even with Emma there,"_

"_Emma? As in Princess Emma? The one who abdicated her inheritance of the throne in favor of her daughter, Rose III?" Malia looked so shocked._

"_Yes, I think, she came from the future and says that she's my daughter, and Lan's," _

"_But I will take your offer, I feel that in the passing of time, you will eventually need me,"_

"_Yes, I think you're right,"_

I had transformed back, and closed Mico's screen, so I was warned of the other scout's approach, only by my ears, and Malia's quiet gasp. But when I heard the jingling mail of Lan's armor I had to smile.

"Mico needs to learn to distinguish friend from foe," I said stopping in my tracks, "This is Malia, I don't know who she is here, but that's because she doesn't know. But Malia was an Immortal. She saw the end of Meapation, and Osseus, and all the other kingdoms. I judge that Galaxia did it. According to Malia's estimations our powers began awakening about the same time that Galaxia destroyed our world. So our power wasn't ever in Galaxia's grip. If it had been then our powers wouldn't have awoken the way they did. We would have been reawakened in our own world. But because our powers were never Galaxia's, Our world wasn't reset with everyone else's. I'm sorry Elle, Osseus, but the reason we awoke here was because our world was destroyed," My voice was solemn, and I knew they felt the same heart-wrenching grief that I did, "I was hoping the reason Chibi-Usa couldn't remember me was because we went back there, but that world is gone. The typical ways of getting there are destroyed. I think we must have a greater deed waiting for us to fulfill. But I think we'll need to access the Hall of Doors."

That last line should have been so stunningly amazing and profound, it should have made everyone fall silent. Instead I hear Sailor Moon asking the most obvious of questions.

"What's the Hall of Doors?"

"It was Megan's idea. It was hidden high in the Gibb mountains, and it wasn't really part of any world. It was a bit like the Wood Between Worlds from The Chronicles of Narnia. But it had a single entrance in our world, but any number of doors in any number of other worlds. It was Megan's way of connecting all her stories. She liked it when there were two almost completely unrelated books, or series of books which were connected in only one place, like the Hall of Doors. Megan was the only who knew how to enter every door in this world. But every door went to a different place, or time. So one door might take us to the Gibb mountains during Queen Rose II's reign. But one right next to it might land us in the middle of the Queendom of Six in the middle of the war with Ka, Drakul, and the Queendom. The first might be pleasant, the second deadly. The problem with this plan is that this ability to find the doors was tied into Megan's sense of sight. The one sense she no true access to." Hannah explained rather thoroughly. I'm rather proud of her.

"And before someone asks, Mico can't help us. You see it was tied into my magic. The power that made me a very powerful, completely uncontrollable mage. It also allowed me to have an instinctual grasp on Ancient Mean (a language of magic) and the ability to see the Doors. Mico doesn't have to ability to see the doors because he can only sense that they are there. He can't tell when, or where each door would take us, or how to enter it. Because you see some Doors can't simply be walked into. Some you have to go into at a certain velocity, and others have to be opened with magic. The Doors themselves are very complex pieces of magic, which have been in place since the creation of the kingdoms. But only Rose's completely singular type of magic could access them properly," Why did I have to create my world so in tune with how I was? Now I couldn't touch this magic, not without training.

"Why would it be set up that way?" Another obnoxious question. But from the voice this one was from Chibi-Moon rather than Sailor Moon.

"Because I have a singularly selfish mind which constructed my entire world in a way which would benefit me more than anyone else. But would harm no one else. But if I remember correctly Rose taught Hannah some of the basics of connecting with the Hall of Doors. And Rose's daughter Emma spent her life's work into learning every language which could be of benefit to her in this. She accessed the Hall of Doors at age twenty after learning a dozen or more languages. She found love in this other world, she married and had a daughter she named after her mother. This was Princess Rose Emma-Ann III,"

"Then could Emma help us?" This question was Lan's. I'm surprised he couldn't figure out how unlikely it would be for this Emma to be as scholarly as the Emma of the past. And even less likely that she would have the memories of her last life to help us.

"Not likely. She isn't likely to actually be Princess Emma Rose reborn. It's even less likely that she would be able access the memories of that life. I think that if she could access these memories she would be rather scarred because of it. I mean Emma Rose lived her entire life; had a husband and a daughter. The impact of the memories of my last life is screwing with me enough as it is. Imagine if you're an eight year old who can remember being an old woman. I think it might actually drive me crazy as everything else is most definitely trying," I told them in my most serious voice.

"Wait, you can access all your old memories?" Usagi asked a bit in wonderment.

"Yes, all of them. In fact all those times when I was looking catatonic before? I was reliving the corresponding day of my last life. I can still do it. But when I do I have complete access to everything I knew at the time, and everything I saw, and did. It's as real as this life, sometimes a bit more so," I touched the ring on my finger gently, "I think the link has to do with the outpouring of power I got on my birthday. You might have noticed the power surge we all felt. Yours leveled out to something more controllable, but mine is still in its complete full power that Rose lived with her entire life. If I'm not careful I think I could kill the entire city in a rage without even blinking."

"She's right. Her power is as high as mine. I never was able to figure out how Rose wasn't an Immortal with the amount of power she had. I think Rose worked so hard for worldly goals that even with her constant outpouring of power she was unable to create a shield from her emotions, like I did during the first war," Malia put in from behind me.

"Well we can tell you the rest of the History later, for right now, let's just get Malia some clothes that don't scream powerful mage. Why are you wearing a war mage's uniform anyway, you could just as easily have worn an Immortal's Soft Dress," I asked starting on again. I could feel the scouts moving out of my way as we walked the smelly tunnels.

"I told you my powers in this life began emerging at the time of my death in my last life. At the time we were in the middle of a war, so the dress of a war mage were the last things I wore. You should have seen the queen's protector. She was in her full regalia,"

"How come no one ever wore full regalia for me? Well except at my coronation. But I was in some dangerous wars too," I whined piteously.

"The entire war was never on the line for you. We were even allied with the Empire. Yet we still fell,"

"YOU WERE ALIGNED WITH THE EMPIRE?!" My stunned voice echoed through the tunnels, bringing back to me my words just as I said them.

"Well, I said we were desperate," Malia was definitely trying to defend their actions to me.

"Well I guess if the protector was wearing 'full regalia'" I was making a face and waving my arms as I walked. I liked the full regalia. But I had also said that it was only worn in the event of a disaster.

"What's 'full regalia'?" Jupiter asked uncertainly from somewhere behind me.

"Just like the coolest outfit ever! Okay so it's stiff leather protecting the chest and private areas, just enough to guard those vital points. Then very soft leather forms an open skirt, much like Malia's war mage skirt. Then there was a nearly impenetrable field that covers everything like a second skin, even their insides. But this shield is so thin you can't tell it's there. But the best part is that if magic (which can sometimes penetrate a shield no matter how well constructed) comes too close it's returned to its sender without damage to the inner shield, or any of the protector's charges. Which would be the entire royal family, and any soldiers fighting for them. In fact the protector is much like a General, but better equipped to actually protect her people," I really loved the idea of the shields. But they had only once been worn for me. I think only once for any but the last queen.

"Oh, I see," Jupiter sounded unimpressed. Well I thought it was a good idea.

"Another cousin! Well you'll just have to stay in Sean's room," My mom cried happily after being hypnotized by Luna-P again. I have to say that Luna-P is almost as useful as Mico.

I climbed the stairs up to my room with Malia trailing in my wake. She pounded as she walked nearly as much as my little brother. I hadn't seriously thought it possible.

"We'll have to enroll you at my school. You can borrow one of my uniforms for tomorrow. I think it will fit you," I opened my closet door and blindly ran my hands through the clothes until I found one that felt like a school uniform. I had five, one for each day of the week. Don't ask me how my mom came up with that one, she is a force all her own.

"What is this?" Malia asked quietly.

"Didn't I give you a sailor uniform? Like mine? Don't tell me I grabbed the wrong thing!" I reached in and started feeling for a uniform again.

"Well it looks like what you're wearing, but isn't this a little undignified for two princesses and an Immortal?" Malia asked moving the outfit so it rustled on its hanger.

"Well I personally have wanted to wear a sailor outfit since I was six or seven. I think it's perfectly dignified," I told her groping for the closet door.

"Well I suppose I will wear it if I must. But won't such strange clothes make people pay more attention to me?"

"You have to be happy that there was an anime convention in the area, or everyone would have thought you were crazy. As it is people will think that you're strange enough being a cosplayer. But it could have been worse," I told her and opened my bedroom door before Brian could slam into it. As I said, he walks very loudly.

"What?"

"Mom wants you to empty the dishwasher,"

"What if I drop a cup. I it will shatter, and I will die. Plus I have to figure out how to do my homework. You empty the dishwasher," I told him and slammed the door in his face.

"What was that about?"

"My little brother trying to pawn the jobs which used to be mine onto me, because he doesn't feel like doing it So I exaggerated. He'll figure it out eventually. When that happens I'll simply have to tell my mom what he's been doing,"

"You might just be the most devious person I've ever met," Malia said with an accompanying sound of moving hair. Which would have been quiet except for how she wore her hair. She wore her hair in braids. Each braid had a small charm woven into the end of it. So you could hear tinkling when she moved her head. I may need to do something about that.

"You realize that those charms are very strange here right?" I asked walking over and bumping my legs against my bed. I turned and flipped myself up on it.

"But, they're both symbols of my powers and amplifiers of it. I can't leave them off. As it is I seem to be missing more than half of them. Only half of my hair is up," This made me raise my eyebrows. If they had been in danger, and they were fighting why didn't she have all her charms?

"I suppose they can stay for now, but be careful about them huh? People here aren't used to stuff like that. Which ones are you missing?"

"The ones which dampen the powers of the people around me mostly. I took them off so that all the mages could protect us with their all,"

"Oh, then it makes sense that you wouldn't have them in. I was a little worried, because I can't remember ever seeing you without all your hair charms woven into your braids," I told her pulling at the strands of my hair.

"Well yes, you have so much power I don't know what you do with it all, well other than leak it all over,"

"I know as Rose I had a locket, it suppressed some of my power so that I could function. Mico said that I would have all my powers back on the seventeenth birthday. But it feels like when I was wearing my locket And I haven't had any magical mishaps," I told her confused.

"That's because on the day before your seventeenth birthday you got a ring, which absorbed much of your magical energy, and Lan got another. This way the two of you could keep in contact with each other, without too much trouble. But your ring was also designed to dampen your magic to a certain extent. I would expect that when you found Lan he would have given you the ring. How else would you be wearing it?" Malia explained and touched the ring on my index finger.

"Lan didn't give it to me. And I don't think Lan wears one,"

"But for the dampening magic of the ring to work you would have had to imbue both with your magic, but the second ring would have to have been touching Lan when you had a power boost, as on your seventeenth birthday,"

"But Lance has the other ring. He swore to protect me, before he knew I could protect myself. I haven't seen much of him lately. Not since Lan reappeared, when I was blind and deaf. He's been wearing normal clothes, and taking care of me all the time,"

"Lance? Who's he?"

"Oh, he's a guy in my school. He came up to me randomly and said 'Na cöhl ta Meapation, Princess'. I have to tell you that I'm the only person who knew what that meant in this time Although Corey (Elle) might have recognized it if she heard it," I flopped back on my bed (which was made for once).

"'Na cöhl ta Meapation' Why would he say that?"

"I don't know. But he protected me until Lan showed up. But he's still been a good friend to me,"

"Stupid, stupid, stupid princess," Malia forced out between giggles. I didn't even stop to ask what she was talking about. It wasn't that important.


	8. Chapter 7

Act III Chapter I

Another Enemy?! What's up with this?

"Please make our new exchange student, Malia Somono, feel welcome. She is from America, and has come to help Mami-san out a bit while she's here," Sensei told the class our blatant lie. To tell the truth, we don't know why Malia had come here, but whatever the reason, we needed a good excuse as to why she's here. My blindness was just a good excuse.

I could hear everyone shift to look at the new girl. They would most likely be wondering why she was wearing a sailor outfit, which was just a tiny bit too small or her. I think it's close, but I know that Malia is taller than me. So she is most likely showing a bit more leg than I am. But Malia seems to like showing skin, I mean she did wear an Immortal's Soft Dress her entire life.

"Hello, I hope to get along with all of you very well," Malia said, and (by the sound of the charms in her hair (I couldn't get her to ditch them), and the rustle of her clothes) she bowed.

"Well go take the seat behind Mami-san then, I you could help her with the math?" Sensei suggested in a quiet voice. Of course I could still hear her, even though she didn't want me to.

Malia's heels clicked across the floor as she moved through the room. I sure I heard a small whistle from one of the boys, but I couldn't even begin to guess which one it was. Mostly because I don't really know that many of the boys, just Lan and Umino really. The others just weren't ever very important to me.

"Princess, these people don't think my skirt is too short," Malia whispered in my ear as she leaned forward pretending to readjust her skirt.

"No, but they think it's shorter than anyone else's, that's what the whistling was," I told her in an equally quiet voice. One of Malia's charms allowed any words spoken about her, or for her to reach her ears. So it didn't matter that her ears weren't trying to take on the work of her eyes as well.

"Oh, I thought they were just snoring," I could imagine the face she was making, and it was _funny_. So of course the hiccupping laugh began. So everyone else was quickly laughing, even Sensei.

Math wasn't anymore eventful with Malia telling me the exact numbers and calculations taking place on the board than it had been before. In fact math hadn't been any more, or less boring than it was when I could see, and hear perfectly well. I just disliked math in general.

"Mami?" Malia asked in a quiet voice a few days later, in math of course.

"Yes, Malia?" I asked in English to give her a hint.

"I was wondering why you keep pulling at the hem of my skirt when you think I'm not watching you?"

"What? I don't know what you mean?"

"I mean when I'm in 'normal' clothes you will steal my uniform and tug at the hems, but you always put the outfit very close to where it was to begin with,"

"Well, you're kirt is simply too short. I can't believe no one has said anything to you about it yet. It just seems so unlikely,"

"Of course it is. I used my overflowing magical ability to help me. I used it so that no one would think to comment on how short my skirt was in a negative way, only in a positive way. The only problem with this is that it all depend on the perspective, so if someone thinks it' a good comment to say that they can see my bottom, then they will be able to say it. But if they think it's a negative thing to say that my legs are shapely, they cannot remember to say it. In fact as it crosses their mind to say it, they forget they were ever going to say anything at all,"

"You used magic on people?"

"Well of course? What did you think I would do to prevent notice?"

"Take out the hem in the skirt, maybe?" I suggested, still speaking English.

"Hem? What's that?" Malia had her head cocked in an utterly annoying way.

"That little bit of fabric which has been sewn upwards so that the skirt wouldn't be too long on me. It used to reach all the way past my knees." I told her absently touching the end of my skirt which rested a short bit above my knees.

"Oh that? I can take that out really fast," Malia offered.

"Wait till we get back to my house will you? No unleashing magic in front of the world," I'm really glad that we were talking quietly, and everyone seemed to fall asleep the second we stepped foot into the English room.

"Of course Princess," She really shouldn't be calling me 'Princess' where the whole world can hear her I they only use their ears.

"There, no more hem. But now my skirt is the same length as yours," I swear I could see a frown on her face.

"That's how it's supposed to be Malia. I wonder why you think it so odd that your skirt should be an inch, or maybe it's less, it's about an inch on me, above your knees?"

"Do you not remember what a soft dress looks like? You could see in your last life," Malia said sounding as if she were choking back laughter.

"Well of course I remember a soft dress, you never really wore anything else back then did you?"

"No I didn't, because it was proper for me to wear a soft dress But it shows more of my shape, even if it covered just as much," Malia said seriously. In my mind's eye (the only kind of eyes I really have at this point) I could picture the tight leotard like lower layer, the crooked belt, with a skirt attached, which showed her left hip. The tall socks, and tight shoes. In fact it was so tight on her that if you saw her in the dark you might at first think she was naked. Especially because she never did take her hair down out of those braids, not even to wash them. In fact I don't know how she keeps them so lean. Maybe she used magic on them?

"Yes, I remember. You know now that I think about it that collar of your looks a bit like a sailor collar, except you don't have a huge bow attached," I told her stretching out.

"Yes, I suspect there must have been a cross in the Doors at some point. I can't think of any other reason why that would happen. How do you think Hollywood got their ideas of this world's 'Middle Ages'? They got it more from our world than from the truth of the past. But people think that they are only trying to glamorize what was in this world but instead they are telling what is the truth of a completely different world." I could hear Malia playing with a braid that hung in her face.

"Oh. Malia can you use the Doors?" It had been bothering me for awhile. Malia has only slightly more power than Rose, if I remember correctly. If that's true shouldn't she be able to use the Doors?

"Yes, but only with great difficulty, and little accuracy. My specialties lie else where. For example. Rose couldn't create a shield to even protect herself very well. But I could protect armies worth of people without trouble. But I can't form a ring of fire around an audience hall. But you could do it without trouble of any kind. In some ways I was much more powerful than you, but in others you far surpassed me," Malia said seriously.

"Really? Then why is it that you're the one who became an Immortal, and yet I'm the one who could actually do it?" I asked.

"What do you mean by that? I am an Immortal. I will live forever unless slain," Malia sounded confused. Oh yeah, I rock. I confused a woman who has lived or several hundred years.

"I mean because I can use the doors I can appear only or a few days every year, and in different places, and so I could be called Immortal. How do you think Setsuna is as young as she is. She's lived even longer than you," I told her with a grin on my face. I was feeling really great about myself right then.

"Perhaps that is why you never became an Immortal, because of your distinct Power allowed you to live for such a long time without being so affected by the passing of time. It would have required the same amount of emotional separation from the world as I used to become an Immortal," Malia now sounded ponderous. Man, I gave her a good idea.

"How did you become an Immortal anyway?" I asked playing with a lock of my own long hair.

"May I show you with my Power?" Malia asked quietly. I could hear the bracelets on her wrist jingling. I'm not sure where he got all hose bracelets, but they sure do make a lot of noise, but a tinkling like bells. A bit like her charms jangling against each other really.

"Yeah, I don't mind," I told her shifting myself slightly.

"Then here we go,"


	9. Chapter 8

Act III, Chapter II

Malia's Memories

_It was late, and I had just gotten the news that Rose, our leader had lost _Nadilire_. Now hope was low, and everything was perhaps lost. I they switched, then we would likely loose this war. But even I could not figure out how we could re-anchor her in this world without that stone. And so she would float away from us, and our cause would be lost._

"_Lady Malia, We need your help," It was Naninire._

"_What is it, Naninire?" Naninire was the closest thing I had to a friend in this army. I only she would stop being so deferential, then perhaps we might truly be friends._

"_Lady Rose wishes to see you, she says that she thinks she's 'falling out of alignment with herself' I believe those were her exact words, Lady," Naninire sounded confused, and stumbled over the words which translated badly into Mean._

"_I will see to her. I only wish we did not have to deal with this," I touched the end of the braid that hung to the side of my face. At the end was a small silver charm, it was in the shape of a broken heart, split through the keyhole in it's center._

_I lifted the flap of the tent and let Naninire out before me. I followed her through the labyrinth of concealed tents, and wooden shelters. We were hiding within the land we already possessed I suppose that was all that could be expected, what with the Ka'ans hunting us all through our forests I have come to think of these people, and this place as my own, even though I come from so far away._

_The Lady's tent was only about the same as mine. Even though she is our leader, she still has no rank higher than mine. But there were those who did. Princess Raige, Princess Christine, and Princess Tatty all had higher technical standing. But they did the political fighting, Lady Rose led all those who physically fought to be free of the Tyrants from Ka._

"_Ah, Lady Malia I need your help. You see I can no longer be sure I'm the one commanding, I must find _Nadilire_. Otherwise I fear we are doomed, But I need to know what this other side of me knows. She has such knowledge, all of it would make our lives so much easier Things like 'computers', and 'cars', and 'plumbing'. What worries me is that she also knows the damage these things can cause the world. I worry that the Quantiuns might someday figure out these things and spoil our world. So perhaps if we introduce those things that don't hurt anything, we could prevent the Quantiuns from ruining everything," Lady Rose sounded so commited to this._

"_There is no way to find _Nadilire_ now that he is lost. You see once you lost him he ceased to exist in this world. It is possible that your other half will find it and in so doing anchor herself where she is, but I think that unlikely, because it didn't necessarily flee to your other half. It could be that he went off to find a future life of yours.," I told her in a calm voice._

"_Then we'll have to do our best to plan for my disappearance if it comes to that. Otherwise I don't know what would happen to our cause. We may lose this war, but I don't want it to be because of my stupidity," Lady Rose sounded so brave to me. But I knew that she didn't mean it exactly like that. She meant rather that they would have to restrain her if she started spouting things in foreign languages, or about her other half._

"_Then we will, but remember that we can't always do-" I cut off as a strange look passed over Rose's wide eyes. They were bright pink, but I knew that was a connection which was formed to her other half after the loss of _Nadilire_._

"_Lady Rose," I said in a warning sort of voice._

"_Lady what's with that?" Rose was speaking common in a haughty sort of voice, 'Oh I must be dreaming again. But if I am why don't I know stuff? Like who you are."_

"_I am Lady Malia, and you must have been stronger in spirit than our half of Rose. Because despite the sound of it, Lady Rose, and you didn't have the same amount of everything," I told her. I felt my hope leave me it was over. _

_Instinctively I released my magic into both myself and Rose, because this was the combination of both girls. Pain blasted me from my feet, but the other girl stood tall. A small charm fell to the dirt between us, and another followed it with a soft clink of silver against silver._

_I picked them up. Perhaps it was stupid, but they were made of my power, so they wouldn't hurt me. One was an ornate key, the other a lock, which the key would fit in. I wove them into two new braids in my hair. I'm making a collection, even though it's only three. Rose watched me impassively._

"_You know, by wearing those you're committing yourself to a life of locked emotions. But also to a life helping me, and any of my other lives when I'm in trouble. You can't get out of it. Not without using that key to undo the lock. I caution you, and if you want to do it anyway, this long life of slavery to myself, then hand me the lock. I will keep it safe, and I will bring it with me to my every lie, although it won't always be a real lock, that key will always free you, as long as it is not stolen from me. I promise that I will never withhold your freedom, but until you want it, I need that lock, so that I might know that you mean the best for me, and for all I believe in. I can remember you now, We have never met before, but until the end of the world I will be reborn into my line, and I will depend on your wisdom. I'm counting on you._

"_Malia you must promise me, promise you won't do what I just asked of you, even though it was my other half. But now the two of us are in harmony, for a moment at least but I don't know how long that will last. So please promise us?" Rose asked so sincerely that all I could do was unwind the braid and hand the lock into Rose's fingers. Rose kissed it and hung it on the silver chain that _Nadilire_ had rested on before. I felt the magic the two sides added up to. It was no wonder they had been separated, without my help this girl might kill everything by accident._

"_I will protect you now and always. I promise, Princess,"_

"_She's not a princess. There are only three of us, and you know that very well," I menacing voice came from behind me. I turned to see Princess Raige leaning against the tent pole._

"_Highness," I said with a low bow. I'm glad they didn't require me to curtsy, it would be hard to do in my war mage's dress._

"_Why did you call her 'Princess'?" Raige wanted to know. It struck me that Raige wasn't nearly as pretty as the raven haired Rose. Raige had straight blond hair pooling on her shoulders, only to fall and drape itself around her well exposed chest and bare-back. Raige was a dragon trainer, and you could see the scars all up and down her arms and back. But those were all old, from long before Raige was named the princess of her people._

"_because I had a flash of something from the future. In it Rose begged you not to separate, but to keep your forces joined with hers, so that they might all work together to keep Ka out. After a war is won. But you refused, left Rose's palace in what will be the capital and you weren't seen outside the mountains ever again. So I suppose you die there," I told her calmly, "besides if you don't name her a princess with the rest of you, you will have a revolt on your hands. Rose will one day be well loved and respected, for winning an unwinnable war when everyone else was ready to give up."_

_Raige glared at me, but she muttered something about field promotions and stormed off._

_Two days later we met in battle for the last time. After that win the princess agreed unanimously that Rose would be known from then on as Princess Rose Emma-Ann Macay I, ruler of central Meapation, which was once neutral territory which wasn't ruled by any of the princesses._

"Does this explain it to you?" Malia asked sounding a bit sad.

"You locked yourself to my ancestor?"

"No, I locked myself to you. Your last life was not your first,"

"What?" I couldn't think of another response. None at all.

"You wouldn't remember that life, except you might trust, or distrust the reincarnations of the people you knew in that life, just on instinct. So I understand why you didn't know about any of those lives," Malia said touching my wrist. It was then that I realized she had been touching my forehead before.

Just like that episode of Sailor Moon Stars where Saturn shows up and gives young Hotaru a crash course in her past. I think her finger might have been glowing, because cool stuff like that happens all the time even though people don't think they will. Plus my forehead was tingling.

"Why wouldn't I remember any of them?"

"Because until that life you were always divided into two halves. The two would be complete opposites of each other, but they would at the same time be the same person Like how you are both optimistic and pessimistic at the same time. But one person would be optimistic, and the other would be pessimistic. Everything would be like this. But all your lives (as far as I know) have greatly valued the army, or military, and have lived with them for at least a short time, even I they don't remember. They have all also believed that one of the most important things you can have is life, and freedom to use that life how you will, as long as you don't destroy another's life," Malia explained.

"So why wouldn't I remember?" because only one half of your soul lived each of those lives. There's not enough of you in any of them to ingrain it upon you," Malia told me.

"Oh…So why was my soul like that?"

"Because after your Incarnation you split your soul in half so that you could never do such things as you did in your fist life. I don't know exactly what it was, but it was horrible, and it was caused by the passion for all life you held, and all the power that made you completely uncontrollable. The only time we can remember everything is when we're Wandering Souls, which happens only to those of us with such power as we have. Because after a life of using and controlling such uncontrollable power as we have we end up needing a rest.

"You are a rather unique soul in that you didn't want a rest, but rather felt such repulse for what happened that you would do such a horrendous thing as split your soul. It was never intended that way, but you have always been one to throw out the readily accepted answer to everything. But because your soul was never intended to be in two pieces your two halves kept trying to draw you back together. The weaker half would get something that anchored them there, rather than pulling them back to the other stronger half. But the need of the place around them for such a soul, whether the weaker or stronger half seemed to play a part, because you soul was drawn to Meapation, instead of here," Malia explained some more.

"Here? This life? So I'm going to be pulled away yet?"

"no, not this life, this world. Actually I think one of your past lives created the Doors so that they would be able to see their other half. Rose II never knew about the cycle of reincarnations, and she was never aware of the fact that your soul was being controlled by _Nadilire_, kept from getting too powerful in that life,"

"_Nadilire_, heart's flower? What is that?"

"I think you know of it had the 'Ruby Rose'? As I said Rose II was never aware of it, even though it had formed itself on her. Well actually it split itself into pieces, each part coming to you at a different time. That tattoo is a part of him, but so are those rings,"

"Him? You referred to it as a 'him' then too,"

"Yes, _Nadilire_ is a separate soul which pledged to protect you when you were still split, he has followed you from life to life since. He only left you as Rose I because he could sense your other half trying to draw you together. He thought it was time for you to be one person again. You lived a lot more lives than I can count, but _Nadilire_ always did his best to protect you,"

I didn't know what to say. Where was her now? I didn't like to think that he was in three pieces, I would rather he was only one Then I might be able to thank him for everything over all that time.


	10. Chapter 9

Act III, Chapter II

Memories and Visions

"_A blind girl? A blind girl is going to defeat me? I simply can't believe that. I may not be invincible, but my master will keep me from death. I will live with his blessing, always. I will never die," The woman was turned away from me, but I could tell she was very pretty. She was wearing a long tight black dress, which had purple lace on the bodice, and trailing from the long sleeves. Incongruously she was wearing tall white lace up boots, which were revealed by the way she was sitting in the chair._

"_yes, but you have died before. In fact it was this girl who once killed you before," This was a tall brawny man, but he was also wearing black. She sat in a more proper position across a table from the woman._

_A young woman wearing almost all purple with a few smatterings of black leaned against a wall. Her hair reminded me o Hotaru, I only it was a little shoulder, this girl's hair only reached her chin. It was a dark purple that was nearly black, I think there was a pattern, because her entire dress was black except for a few black details. Her dress had a wide skirt, which was made to stand out (a little) by lacey tulle. Her shoes were small shoes that looked like nothing so much as a professional ballet dancer's slippers. Her top showed little, because it had a collar that rose all the way up to her chin to contrast the other woman. Her sleeves were loose, and the ends were simply dripping with lace._

"_You know, she's killed all of us before. We really shouldn't underestimate her. Her power is greater now, because of her love of its manifestation," The girl in purple said in a light airy voice._

"_I still don't think she'll be any threat to me. I did once rule far more land than she ever knew I am a queen after all," The woman in black said shifting positions. Now I could see her long light brown hair which cascaded around her. There was a small crown covered in black stones on her head._

"_Yes, well she managed to defeat you and wrench your rule from your hands and hand it over to a group of ragamuffin children. She however managed to rule her land in peace all her life, and even gained some land in the mountains after they defeated my invaders," The man's voice was very deep and smooth. But I could tell he was not one I would want to cross knives with._

"_Yes, well I'm most disappointed with my defeat though. How could I know that my spies would never return to me? I thought if I could get my people close enough to her my path would be clear, but obviously she is more persuasive than I ever thought. Perhaps we should move slowly while dealing with her? Among us we had three huge empires, and armies that were proportionate in size, and yet this little girl, this annoying little girl sent all of home without even getting bloodied. Yes, we should bide our time," The woman in purple looked over at her companions with a piercing purple glare._

"_But our master awakens. He will not be happy if we have not dealt with her before his awakening," The woman in black finally sat up. I gasped in shock. This was Alexis, my once best friend. Alexis had taught me how to draw. What was she doing among such plotters?_

"_He will deal with her. She is far beyond our power. If we accept our weaknesses, then we may become stronger. Our master will deal with her faster than we ever dealt with any opponent all through our lives," The man said picking up a cup o tea off the table in front of him._

"_To Sixela," The woman said raising her glass in Alexis's direction._

"_To the Coronen Emperor," Sixela said raising her glass to the man._

"_To the Dragon," He in turn raised his glass to the girl in pruple._

I sat up gasping. What a horrible nightmare, to think that I saw all my enemies from my last life, plotting together. If they had worked together back then, then I wouldn't have won any of those battles they spoke of. Because they were talking about me, of course. Who else had defeated the Queendom of Six in her early teens, then gone on to get rid of all the spies in my court, then finally in the later years of my life defeated the invaders from the north, they had called themselves the Coronen Empire.

The Empire of the Dragon had caused me the most trouble. They had sent both spies, mercenaries, and naval fleets to try to get into the Kingdoms. They had actually gotten a lot o people in to tell the truth. Some of them had been simple merchants, who had only come because they wanted to trade, but there had also been the spies, the mercenaries, the normal soldiers, the mages, and Enchanters. In fact if Malia hadn't warned me that she had seen them coming, we would have been conquered by the Dragon. And to think that all this time it had been a cute little girl.

We had heard many years later that she had been assassinated by a woman from Quantios. A woman who had been cursed before her birth. Everyone who came into her heart ended up dying, I thought her story a little tragic, and I gave her a place in my Kingdom. But she sailed off her with her lover and never came back. I wonder if Malia would know what happened to her, because I don't.

"What's up with you today?" Corey asked annoyed that afternoon while we were sitting in the café. It seems that I had been spacing out again.

"I had a strange dream last night. I really hope it had nothing to do with what's going on. It was a nightmare, but Alexis was there. But Alexis was evil, and the Dragon, and the Emperor from the North. He was there. Do you even remember that story? Because I don't even remember living the actual events," I said staring blankly as my hand gripped the rapidly cooling mug of tea.

"Alexis? The Dragon? But Alexis should be in Canada again. That's where she was the last time I heard from her at least," Hannah sounded surprised. I don't blame her. I had thought Alexis was in Canada as well.

"But the Dragon wasn't who I thought they would be. It was a little girl all in purple, but I always thought that the Dragon would be someone strong, and smart. Like Jagang," I smiled at the reference to one of my favorite series. One of the others had read it, but it was a good comparison.

"And you thought up the Dragon, so why wouldn't he be…well a 'he' to start with?" Corey sounded concerned too. I mean when a story starts getting out of hand (which I'd like to say it had been doing for a year now, well a little over a year to tell the truth) you typically start getting concerned. Of course Rose wasn't blind, stupid, stupid enemy. Whoever the hell it is, I'll get it.

"The Dragon was reborn, the same as any of us. Our souls wander and find new connections with the world around us. Our souls have no gender either, so two who were lovers in one life might be mother and daughter in the next. Or perhaps vice-versa. The Dragon may have been a brute in her last life, but now she is using her brain instead of her muscles from what you said But it seems she is still out for world domination, just a different world," I could hear the sigh in Malia's voice.

"Then what about Alexis? She was our enemy, Queen Sixela in our last life. But in this life she was our friend. How do you explain that?" I asked looking for a flaw in her reasoning. And an explanation for mine.

"You keep your friends close, and your enemies even closer," Of course Malia had to pick now to turn sage on us.

"You suck," I muttered lifting the cold tea to my mouth.

"On what?"

"Idiot," I was still muttering, but everyone else was laughing hysterically.

"I still don't understand what was so funny," I could hear the pout in Malia's voice as Lan held me around the waist. We were all going home, and Malia had been going on about it for the last several hours. Emma was somewhere, but the street was so crowded I couldn't make out her footsteps.

"It's a simple insult used quite often," Lan said.

"Oh, then why were you insulting me Princess?" Malia now had lost the sulk and was acting normally. Figures.

"Because I was annoyed with you," I gently pulled my hand from Malia's grip and used it to hold onto Lan's shirt instead. I'd rather hold onto Lan.

"But why?"

"because you suddenly decided to be all sage and everything!" I yelled and turned my face into Lan's side. When Malia tried to say something I just told her to shut-up. I was in a really bad mood today, and I don't have a clue as to why.

"I think we should leave mommy alone," Emma said in an overly loud whisper. Little kids bug me.

"What's wrong with me,

"I feel lonely in a crowd,

"Everyone is smiling,

"I made myself left out,

"I've got an imaginary shield around me,

"And no ones ever really gotten through…" The song seemed suitably morbid to me. I could hear Emma shifting around through my closet, and Malia clicking keys on my computer. Corey and Hannah were both reading, but I would occasionally hear them shift positions or turn a page.

"What's with this song? We've heard it a million times now!" Corey finally lost I, and slammed her book shut. I heard it thump against my bed, then bounce off and slam to the floor.

"I like it. It has a good beat to it," I told her lifting my stylus off my laptop.

"It's morbid! I hate it," Corey really was annoyed. I picked up my iriver and clicked the last button on the top, then the button to the side of the circle, then the same button again. Now it was the song Doki Doki, so I put it back on repeat.

"Well you wanted something different," Hannah said calmly when Corey groaned.

"Don't you have to go to Sunday School soon?" Corey asked hopefully.

"I was Confirmed last year, I don't need to go every week anymore. I don't have to go at all if I don't want to," I said drawing idle lines across the screen in my lap. I was sort of hoping that since my sight was gone it wouldn't warp like it did before.

"What are you doing?" Malia sounded panicked, and the taping at the computer had stopped, I hadn't noticed.

"I'm trying to see if I can get a prophecy for us, one that will allow us to discover if my dream was correct or not," I told her and continued the flowing strokes of my stylus.

"You're pouring out so much Power, stop it!" Malia was screaming. Can Malia scream like that? I hadn't thought so, but I guess it can happen.

"What? I'm just drawing," I told her adding another curving line into the center of the sketch.

"Ah! Stop it!" I head Malia banging the chair to the ground as she stood up. I find it surprising she could do that, that stupid broken chair has unusually good balance (especially for a _broken_ chair).

"Okay, whatever," I said tucking the stylus into it's slot on the side of the computer, "Corey could you save this for me?" I held it up in the direction of my bed. I felt it lift out of my hand.

"Thank you," I think Malia was gasping. That's interesting.

"Megan…" I could hear Corey's voice trembling.

"What is it,"

"I think you should have Mico show you this…it kind of concerns me," Hannah's voice had a sort of trembling to it as well.

"Mico?" I asked pulling the currently-disguised-as-a-cell-phone Mini-Computer out.

_It was truly beautiful, far past what I'm capable of doing. In fact I think it's beyond the capabilities of even Alexis, my friend who was always the best at drawing. The strangest thing about it, is that it was in a realistic style. I think it would be called a black and white photograph, well if I hadn't known that I drew it._

_It was a scene made to look like the end of a bloody battle, the field covered in blood, and dead bodies on one side. On the other was a modern city, which seemed to be half destroyed. The back of my head was seeable at the bottom of the page, and hovering a bit in the distance overlooking the damage was Alexis. She was directly in the center. On one side of her she was dressed all in pink and purple, on the other purple and black. I was likewise split On one side I was wearing my princess dress, on the other I wore my fuku._

I closed Mico and stared off into my private blackness for a moment. I turned inward with a twist of consciousness. Suddenly I was not looking into blackness, but remembering seeing the bloody battle before. It had been just before we killed Sixela. She had been going through the dead bodies, both from her side and the other, and she was wearing that frilling pink and purple dress. It seems that I was going to see history repeat itself.


	11. Chapter 10

Act IV, Chapter I

Secrets come to Light

I screamed as I woke for the next several weeks. I screamed and was terrified as I woke, but I could never remember anything that happened in my dreams. The angel on my right shoulder told me it was a nightmare, but the devil on my left told me it was the future that woke me screaming. I kind of hope the angel was right, but since I've never before woken screaming like that, I think the devil was right.

The angel and the devil have been more outspoken lately, they take my attention from people talking to me, by saying rude things (the devil) or gasping in indignation when anyone says something rude (the angel). I kind of hope I'm not as annoying as the angel, nor so mean as the devil. But I hope I'm seen as having more angel than devil in me.

"Mami? Are you listening to me?" Usagi asked one day when the angel and devil were having a heated debate over whether killing was ever justified. The angel said there was never a good reason to so much as hurt another creature, even when they've done worse to others. The devil said that it was fine to kill anyone, as long as they weren't doing anything important (like saving YOUR life). Of course I fell in the middle, I thought that killing someone who has purposely hurt, or killed another simply from the enjoyment of it could be killed, but anyone else had a right to their own existence, and their life should never be taken.

"No, I'm sorry I wasn't listening, I was…daydreaming," It probably wouldn't do to tell her I was listening to two voices which were basically in my head.

"Oh, well I said that I think I figured out what Emma was talking about that day,"

"What day?"

"The day you were listening in on our conversations with Mico. The day you regained your hearing, and met Emma" Usagi answered sounded exasperated. The angel and the devil were still battling it out, but the topic seemed to have changed to the practical uses of magic, both in the past and in the present day when magic is shunned as ignorant.

"Oh, the thing about my court? But I don't think I have all my court, first of all I don't have Prince Michael,"

"Who was Prince Michael?" Usagi sounded excited Perhaps she was hoping to find him.

"The man I ended up setting Elle up with. I was reliving that day in my last life the same day that I met Emma,"

"Anyone else?" There was a sort of feverous glint in her eyes. I think that's what made the angel and devil turn to look at her.

"Umm…Well I guess there was Emalia, but she would come from the future like Emma. Same for Rose, or Jasson Elizabeth maybe? But she was supposed to be killed in the battle where the Dragon tried to take over our kingdom when she thought we would be frail, I doubt she would have been reborn this soon, her power was as great as Malia's, or close. I suppose that Mari could be considered, although during my time she was still rather young, or Michelle, she was generally close to court matters. So I suppose that Mari and Michelle are the only ones to worry about, well other than Michael of course,"

"Who are they?"

"Michelle was the second Immortal, she was very active in court politics, but she killed herself fairly early in my reign. No one's quite sure why she would so such a thing, but she did. In fact Michelle was the one who told Elle about how my locket functioned, and gave it to Elle, so that Elle might in turn give it to me.

"You see my parents were trying to marry me off to a man with great political power so that he might take the throne, and control in my place. My parents didn't think that I was suitable to inherit the throne, because I couldn't control the power I had been born with. But Elle got wind of the plan, and decided to help me escape our father's plotting, she needed help so she turned to Michelle, who as I said was very active in court.

"the other Immortals, Elizabeth and Malia, were a bit more reticent during that period. Elizabeth taught magic to the pages, but didn't participate in any kind of politics at all. In fact she seemed to shun them completely. I think her story is rather sad. Well how she became an Immortal at least.

"Elizabeth was often called the 'Middle Sister' The Immortals were often referred to as the 'Three Sisters', even though they rarely saw each other and had basically no blood relation. Elizabeth was born during an era of peace between Malia's birth, and Michelle's.

"Elizabeth was born with one eye blind, and often went to trouble to hide it when I knew her. When Elizabeth was in her late teens, or perhaps it was her early twenties, she met a young man and fell in love with him. He never really noticed her as a woman, but treated her with the respect that was expected for a mage in training. This man was likewise a mage in training, but was much weaker in the Power than Elizabeth. Elizabeth once revealed to him that she liked him, and would like to be more familiar with him.

"He rejected her. She was so stunned and hurt that she closed off her emotions, and became an Immortal. Her power's physical manifestation was as a small silver broken heart. But it hurt her so much to see it, that she asked Malia to wear it in her hair along with the key to her own power, and any number of other protective charms.

"Malia still wears it in her hair, I think.

"Mari is a completely different story. Mari is a very serious young woman, who is very much in love with her cat. She is actually Malia's daughter, but she didn't know that until Alianne led her group deep into the Hall of Doors, and entered another time period of our world, far back when Malia had a husband. I don't remember him, but I think that when he died it must have hurt Malia terribly. But Mari grew up very slowly. It took her a hundred years to reach the capabilities of a four year old. And so when she was old enough Malia left Mari in the care of whoever was at court at the time, and Malia fled into the seclusion you can find only in the deep mountains, or the deep forest.

"But Malia often came to the capital to check on the state of affairs, and to check on her daughter. Mari was not truly an Immortal, but I think that she must have still been alive, if very old when the world fell. But even if she wasn't she lived long past my last life. In fact at the end of my life she only looked to be around fourteen or so."

"That was a really long explanation," Usagi said in a sort of wondering awe.

"I suppose it was,"

I could feel my headache getting worse. It's strange, my headaches had gone away after I lost my sight, but today I had one again, and it was a pretty bad one. The devil keeps telling me that I'm going to die, but I doubt that she's right.

"Rose?" I was with Lan today. Isn't it funny how many names I respond to so easily?

"Yes?" I hadn't been paying attention. The angel and devil were in the middle of a word game, and I was figuring out the answers as they went along.

"I just asked if you would like to go for a walk. You keep furrowing your forehead like you're in pain," Lan was so sweet to suggest that.

"Yes, I have a headache today, so I was sort of wanting to do something," I said with a smile. I don't know if I actually directed to smile towards him, but it was close enough.

Lan helped me up and led me off. I don't know where we went as we walked but eventually I felt the ground give a little under my feet. I stopped and bounced a little.

"Are we in a park or something?" I asked still springing lightly.

"Yes, we are in a small park close to your house," Lan said lightly.

"Ah, I know this place then, I first met you near here right?"

"Yes, it was over to the South of the park though, we're to the north. Here, sit and I'll go get you an ice cream," Lan said leading me to a bench. I reached behind me and found the edge of the seat.

"Okay then," I smiled and sat. I folded my hands in my lap and started listening to the conversation being held on my two shoulders.

"How long do you think it will take?" That was the angel's soft melodious voice.

"I don't think she'll ever figure it out. Nope. Just look at that blank stare. If she was going to figure it out she would have already," That the devil's deep and rough voice, it was almost masculine, but it was obviously a woman's voice.

"No, I think she'll get it eventually, I mean even she can't be that slow…right?" The angel sounded a little unsure.

"Well whatever. Cards?" The devil suggested with rustle of cards being shuffled.

"of course!"

Those two will be the death of me. What were they even talking about? I kind of wanted to strangle them, but I don't think that figments of your imagination will die. That's sad.

"Mami?" A voice asked from somewhere in front of me. It was Lance.

"Yes?" I asked staring forward.

"I thought it was you. I was going to tell you tomorrow in class, but I guess that since you're here and all…well I wanted to tell you that I'm transferring out soon,"

"What? Are you leaving? Why?" I didn't get that, what?

"Well-" He started but he was cut off by a scream. I yanked Mico out of my pocket (he was disguised as a mini pen today, does he get any stupider? I sure hope not).

I reached my hand forward and felt my transformation pen fall into my hand. I lifted it and cried out "Ruby Rose Transformation!" I opened the Mini-Computer in my hand.

"What's up Mico?"

"There was a disturbance of power on the other side of the park. It seems to be stronger, and more concentrated than ever before. This is a different power, and a force to be reckoned with," Mico told me calmly as a slightly pink vision fell over my eyes and smothered the blackness.

_I ran with all my might where Mico showed me with subtle (not) clues, the power was coming from. It was to the South-west part of the park, but because of what Lan said earlier I was suddenly reminded of de jévu. I just hope that it won't be the exact same, because Rose intruded at the worst moment._

_Between several trees I saw a malicious glow. You might wonder how I know it was malicious, but if you saw it you would know too. It was a glow, but it wasn't really light, I think in a way it was the absence of light. But maybe that isn't right either perhaps the only way you can understand is if you see it yourself, but I hope you never have to._

_As I rushed up I saw a young girl in the middle of the light The moment I saw the outline of that dress I knew that my dream had been true, and out opponents really were the same ones we had faced before. You see it was the Dragon._

"_Ah little princess. It seems that I'm littler than you this time doesn't it?" She asked in her cute little girl voice. It bugged me._

"_Yes, and you were never brave enough to actually face me last time were you?" I pointed out the fact that she had sent assassins and spies to kill me last time._

"_You never came after me either," Of course I hadn't. At the time I was a little busy with other things, like a brand new baby, and a slight rebellion in the West._

"_I was busy, you weren't a real threat, so I didn't bother. Besides cleaning Emma up was harder than killing you would have been anyway," I said turning my head to the side in that distinctive anime-I-don't-really-care-what-you-say-I-still-think-you're-wrong sort of way._

"_That's why you sent a stupid little girl and her boyfriend after me? Because you were cleaning up baby drool? How pathetic," She looked so derisive She started so turn, so I kind of missed dodging the rather large column of purple light that came flying at me. In fact if the Ruby Rose (currently pinned to the front of my uniform)hadn't floated forward and absorbed most of the attack, and deflected the rest I'm pretty sure she would have killed me._

_I lifted my hands around the Ruby Rose. It glowed softly as if floated between my fingers._

"_Nadilire? Will you focus my power? Instead of suppressing it, could you make it greater, and focus towards her? In fact we can send all that nasty violet light right back to her," I whispered to the red stone. It's color softened and became pink. I unleashed all my rage, all my hurt, everything at the other woman. Nadilire turned black with all the power and sent a pink and gold spray of power at the other woman. The Dragon screamed and escaped into more of that glow that's sort of the absence of light Nadilire expended my left over power to help the plants around me to grow larger. And did they get big._

_I turned around cradling the little stone in my hands, and found Elle, Osseus, Lan, and a scout I didn't know looking at me strangely. _

"_Princess," The new scout said softly and touched Nadilire with a finger. Elle, Osseus, and Lan reached forward and did the same._

_Nadilire glowed pink and surrounded us all with a rosy light. When it dissipated It was Princess Elle in the only gown she owned, Queen Hannah in her most formal attire, Malia in the Soft Dress, and King Lan dressed for his position, and I was seeing with doubled vision._

"Malia, you're a scout?" I asked hugging Nadilire to my chest. It was then that I noticed that Mico was gone. I looked down at Nadilire, but it was also Mico wasn't it?

"Of course. What did you think I was going to do with all that power?" Malia asked softly.

"Thank you everyone, for restoring my sight," I looked down to see I was in an elegant dress of simple cut. At the bottom it was a deep blue, almost black, the faded out to white around the V-cut neck, the long loose sleeves got very dark near the ends as well. I guess I was dressed as Queen Rose then. Which one, I couldn't tell you.

"You're back Rose," Lan said softly.

"And so are you…Lance,"


	12. Chapter 11

Act IV, Chapter II

Doors

"So why were you leaving?" I asked grasping Lan's hand.

"Because, then I wouldn't have to keep switching between being Lan, and being Lance. You obviously needed and wanted Lan more, so I was going to make Lance disappear from your life," He told me.

"But I think even though you're Lan, you should still be Lance. Like me, I'm Rose, but I'm still Mami, and even though I'm Mami I'm still Megan. I wear a lot of hats for a lot of different people, but I'm fine with that. I'm multiple people anyways," I told him. I leaned up and kissed his chin (which was as far up as I could reach). He leaned down and caught my lips. Have I ever mentioned that I really like his kisses?

"Yeah, yeah lover birds. That's enough," Elle said after a few moments. I could hear her tapping her foot impatiently. I disconnected and turned to my best friend/sister.

"I think you might want to look behind you," Malia said quietly. I turned and once again found myself with an audience. This time it was all the other scouts, and Tuxedo Mask.

"You finally have your romance!" Venus cried happily. She then ran forward and hugged me.

"Why do I have a strange sense of déjà vu?" Jupiter asked Mars.

"Because we already did this with Usagi," Mercury said calmly.

"That would explain it. You think there's a boyfriend from a past life hanging around for us too?" Jupiter asked.

"No, we've never been the focus of the story. That's why we never got any type of romance," Mars said with a sigh. She should be talking, she has Yuuichiro, if she would just open her eyes and look. Of course I shouldn't be criticizing her, I have Lan.

"Ah! There's a Door," I said softly as I turned to look through the little clearing better.

"Where does it go?" Hannah asked excitedly.

"Osseus, the capital, within the last few days of Queen Hannah's life," I told them staring at the Door It may seem weird but this Door looked strangely formal and ornate. I loved the way the light shimmered through the nearly insubstantial door. Green writing almost blended into the trees around it, but I knew the green simply signified the realm of Osseus, it would be silver to go into Meapation, orange for Ka, blue for Christanium, brown for Donquitous, black for Quantios, yellow for Lufiteab, Indigo for the dragon trainer's land, pink for the Queendom of Six, or purple for the Dragon Empire. Or else the writing would be pristinely white if it led elsewhere, like the Hall of Doors, or a different world than the Kingdoms.

"That's morbid," Hannah said in her green and purple brocade. I thought it looked silly, but that was me.

"Yes, it is a bit strange that there would be a Door that requires pure energy to enter, which goes to Hannah's funeral basically," I said reaching for the Door. Hannah grabbed my wrist, and asked, "what if it's a trap?"

"it's not. No one else has my power, nor do they know what I see when I see the Doors. You don't even know. This is a real Door, and it has no trap magic on it. Doors can't be tampered with, not without being able to see the Details," I told her pulling my hand from her grasp, "Besides I can't open without Nadilire's help. It needs absolutely pure energy, anything I give it would be tainted with emotion, and with my personal aura."

"Details? What was that about Details?" Elle asked looking at me strangely.

"The Details. How do you think I know what is behind each Door, and how to open it? The Details tell me everything about this Door. Such as the fact that this one hasn't been used in the last three hundred years, so there has been no one to tamper with it. To so much as touch it with Power you would first have to open it," I told them as I touched the green letters of the Details. They shifted their lines and showed me the exact events happening around the Door.

It was directly across the square from the palace gates, it was the day of Hannah's death. So her funeral would be the day after. But because of the location of the Door on the other side it wasn't much use to us, we would be spotted, and immediately known for dead and dying people. Not a good Door at all.

"We wouldn't want to use it anyway," I told them as I withdrew my hand. I looked around at all their faces. Pluto and Saturn were in the back, and I really couldn't see Saturn well, she still wasn't all that tall. Uranus and Neptune stood really close to them, and to each other. Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon were to the side of them (Sailor Moon's wings were covering Saturn's face), The Inner Scouts were almost directly in front of the Outers, which I think is a little funny. Lan, Elle, Hannah, and Malia all stood close to me. All in all the clearing was a little crowded.

"Why not?" Pluto said something! That was the first thing I've heard her say in about a year!

"Because it opens into a very open, very crowded square, during a time when Elle, and I are dead, Malia's in seclusion, and Hannah is dying. They would all know Hannah at least the moment they saw us. But because of close political ties they would most likely also recognize Lan, Elle, and Myself, and we're all supposed to be dead by a few years. This should be in Rose's reign. Or perhaps it's even Joan's?" I said starting to ponder. It should be either the end of Rose III's reign, or the very beginning of Joan's. I touched the Details, which told me it was a few days from Rose III's accident, which kills her and leaves Joan to rule with only her young daughter by her side.

"Could we use the Time Gat instead?" Pluto asked.

"Well, probably You could use the Time Gate to get to other worlds right? Well then it should get you there without trouble, but at the same time why would we go To tell the truth Hannah's death brings on a short dark period in Osseun history. Besides that it's very close to Rose III's death, and Joan's coronation. So it's also a rather dark time in Meapation. If we wanted answers to something I would suggest going to Osseus in the first years of Hannah's reign, or the middle years of Rose II's (mine)," I told her with a worried expression.

"I think we should go there. I feel the Flow of Time moving slowly around what seems to be a door, which I suppose is the Door. The Flow is very stilted and slow, like it's molasses, rather than flowing in a way like water," Pluto told us staring over my shoulder at the Door.

"Then yes, or I could most likely find us a Door to the same day, maybe a few days earlier. I think there was one in front of Juuban High. I never mentioned it, but I know I saw a rather less impressive Door there, it was into Osseus in the same era," I told them gesturing off towards where I knew Juuban would be.

"I suppose we could look," Hannah said calmly.

"But, we might want to try changing back, yeah," Elle said looking down at her gray, blue, and green dress.

"Okay," I said and started walking. As I walked I concentrated on being Mami. My outfit faded into a pair of jeans and my Chio Chio Italia shirt (It was red with the words Chio Chio written in white Coca-Cola script). I hear Elle sigh at me, of course I make everything look easier than it is, that's what I do.

Lan caught up and grabbed my hand. And it really was Lan, not Lance. It's strange that I still have to make the difference, even though I now know they were the same person. Maybe Lan would come to my school? Since Lance was leaving. And I asked him as much.

"I suppose I could pass couldn't I? I mean I don't look any older than any of you. Although that's a little strange because Lan is technically about a year younger than Rose, and Elle is only a month or so younger. So shouldn't you naturally look older than me?" Lan asked as we walked the paths of the park.

"Perhaps, it's that Lan was always an older, wiser sort of character than the flighty, immature, and childish Princess Rose, or the adventurous, troublesome Princess Elle. Lan was always more mature than either of the sisters," I said leaning on him.

"Yes, I understand perfectly," Lan said as Corey ran up and grabbed onto Lan's other arm. I tugged Lan back tome, but Corey tugged him away.

"My boyfriend," I said warningly looking over Lan.

"My brother," Elle said in a slightly more joking tone.

"Then why do get him? Everyone knows that 'girlfriend' is closer than 'sister'," I told her petulantly.

"Because 'sister' gets him younger than 'girlfriend'," Corey said and stuck out her tongue.

"Not in your case! We both met him at the same time. Then I got him more ever after that, so I'm obviously closer," I told her and stuck out my tongue back at her.

Corey released his arm and stuck her tongue out at me again. Then she ran back to walk with Hannah.

"I've decided that siblings must be a pain," Lan said with a sigh.

"You don't have any?" I asked looking up at his face.

"Not in this life. In my last one I have Elle, who was older, and you might not remember, but I had a much younger half brother named Richard. We all called him Char, because he was a Fire Mage," Lan told me with a sort of dreamy look.

"Oh yeah! He was part of our court right? Then I should tell Usagi, she was trying to find out everyone in our court the other day," I said and looked back to find Usagi leaning on Mamoru, and looking as if she didn't want to be disturbed.

"I'll tell her later," I said and leaned in on him again.

"this is it," I said stopping in front of the semi-substantial Door. This one was worn looking, as if thousands of hands had touched the Door, over hundreds of years along with normal wearing when wood is left out to the elements.

"What do the Details say?" Setsuna asked staring at just to the side of the Door.

"Let's see," I said slowly as I reached out and touched the glowing green words. They gave me pause. The first thing they said was it was the dawning of an unstable era. I turned and looked at everyone else, "We can't use this Door."

"Why not?" Corey asked.

"The Details give me a warning," I said still staring at the huge bold letters

"What does it say exactly," Malia asked with a certain urgency.

"They usually speak in riddles, so it may be hard to understand," I looked around at everyone as they affirmed that they heard me, "Okay it says 'This day is when night turns to dark, and when day turns to dark. To enter is to find a whole other side; to enter is to change. Be cautious, be warned, beware the Door, the tells you TRUTH.'"

"What is it saying? It's contradicting itself, isn't it?" Malia said staring at me. I stared right back.

"As I said before it's a warning. 'When night turns to dark', that's a for me. Both my lives have been known for their love of night's beauty, and both have hated destroying it in any way. So the moon and stars give a haunting light, it's warning me that in this place there is not beauty of night, but only the dark of jet. 'When day turns to dark', this is a warning to any who might hear these words. It says that the beauty of day, which most people see and love, is also lost. So in this time there is no beauty or good to be seen by anyone. 'To enter is the find a whole other side,' I suspect this might refer to a rather dark story in which the royalty of each house of each kingdom inflicted different ideas and different ways than what really happened. I fear this might be the story I once began on a whim, never meaning to finish it. In fact the entire plot-line was never figured out.

"Hannah, I believe it refers to 'that' story. The one I began because one of yours began in a way that made me upset, and made me feel I couldn't work on my other stories after reading. This is the second Emma's story," I said this last in a very soft voice. It boded ill for us if this was really what I thought it was. That story was completely twisted from what it should have been. The only thing that was actually correct was that Osseus was on the side of good, the side of freedom. Even my own kingdom did not survive this massacre of the nature of the world. In fact I didn't even survive it.

"But, Megan I didn't think you ever did more than a few pages," Hannah said worriedly, she understood, although no one else would have.

"I didn't that's what worries me. This place shouldn't be able to exist, it was never fully thought out I can't even remember what was supposed to happen in the capital, or why she didn't want to go there, why Hannah would have stopped her. I really can't figure it out. What worries me more is that next line, 'To enter is to change' what if this means that to enter is to become like ourselves from that time? If that's true, then I think we may be in trouble. We can't use this Door," Hannah looked at me horror-struck. I know she's mad at me because I ended up doing this because I was depressed, so the story is naturally a depressing one. It begins with the main character finding out both her parents, and her older sister have all died. I shudder at what that might have meant to my subconscious.

"Megan…" Hannah started then she turned and looked at Setsuna, "If Megan's right, and I think she is, then there is no question, we cannot use this Door under any circumstances. If Megan is right than what is behind that Door, is beyond our worst nightmares. It is all of reality flipped on it's head. Knowing Megan she even made it so that the very nature of Power is no long finite, and graspable. She'd have made it all on the verge of myth and superstition. And if going through this Door changes us, then it's likely that none of us would have any type of Power left at all."

I think Hannah figured it out nicely. And she's right, I did change the very nature of reality, I flipped things on their heads. I kicked convention out the window. I wonder that I didn't just dump everything and start over anew. But I'm rather scared at the fact that it exists, because if this half thought out world could be sitting here, then the next thing we know we could be pulled into Time Gap, or kidnapped by half-rabbits, or even hidden away in a secret future, where evil rules, and only two girls an see it. Of course that story is perhaps my scariest ever. You see in that one, evil wins.

"Rose, I have to ask, why would you write that?" Lan asked me as he walked me home. I was pretty sure the moment we walked into the house we would be virtually attacked by Emma, Brian, and my mom. They are all rather prone to jumping all over me.

"Well, I was depressed at the time. It was near the end of seventh grade, several of my friends were moving, next year I was going to have to deal with the wide varieties of idiots who only come in male, and Hannah's story itself that I began from get me depressed to begin with. You see in Hannah's story the main character us orphaned near the beginning, I began mine the same way, the problem is that I not only did that I flipped the loyalties of all the kingdoms except for Osseus, it was too central to everything to change. But I'm not sure why it was written, I suppose for no more reason than I began my Good and Evil duet. That one was begun because in every book, every movie good always wins. Perhaps it's because evil in and of itself will eventually fold in on itself leaving only destruction behind, but I used to think that it was because no one had any creativity any longer. I wrote those for the sole reason of letting evil win. I worry those may be real someday, if so I apologize for those years of darkness I have inflicted upon everyone," I did feel truly bad about my darker stories. Maybe they'll go away if I delete them?

"Mami…" Lan's voice was so gentle and soft. I looked at him, and took in the beauty that I could look at him. He looked at me so gently, "You've been through so much, and yet you've been through nothing at all. You are a conundrum if ever I saw one. My Mami, Megan, Rose; You are so many people, and you hold the hopes of the ignorant masses who don't understand their danger."

"I think we all do. We all have to be strong, I don't think there's any way to say that one of us has been through more than any other. We have bad memories from two different lives, but Usagi has had enough bad memories in the last five years to last several lifetimes. I think it really depends on the outlook as to whether we are strong. You've had family die in this life, and the last You've lost battles and watch thousands of nameless, faceless men die. I've seen you in the depths of despair, wishing that you could go back, use your strange talent with the Doors and change everything. But everytime I have seen you try, you come back and everything is as it was to start with. You have had so much pain. But in reward to all the pain we all live through, we have as many joys. Like having each other, I think that counts as a joy worthy to be opposite that pain you've had," Lan said cradling me against him. We were outside my house now, but I didn't want him to leave. I wanted Lan to stay just a little longer. I think he sensed it, because he made not a single move to leave me.

While I understood Lan's words, and the meanings behind them, they had dredged up memories from my last life. Memories that were really best forgotten.


	13. Chapter 12

Act IV, Chapter III

Hopelessness

"What now?" I asked annoyed without turning from my computer screen. I was trying to read through every story I had ever written, but I'm not sure I have them all on my computer.

"Mom wants you," Brian said through the door.

"Tell her I'm busy," I called back.

I heard him call out 'she says she's busy!' as he banged his way down the stairs. That child, he drives me crazy.

I closed the document I was reading and opened another. This was the one I had saved for last, this one was called Good, I was afraid I might have predicted the future, if we couldn't beat those three, then I had.

"Mami, you need to cheer up," Usagi admonished me for the tenth time, "You didn't know. Maybe you wrote the story because it really existed." I've decided I hate optimists, they tend to guess wrong. So I don't listen to them. Of course I have to listen to Usagi, or at least respond to what she says. Since Nadilire made himself known to me, I had realized that the Silver Imperium Crystal was a soul, like Nadilire, but it was even stronger. So I tended to listen to her, she has less control over the crystal, than I ever did over Nadilire, because Nadilire has made himself known to me, repeatedly.

"I'm a pessimist, I don't cheer up," I told her as I idly drew something on my laptop. I really wasn't paying attention, it felt like everything was lost, and it was all my fault.

"We'll just have to do something about that won't we," Usagi said vaguely. Then she promptly skipped away. It was just before lunch, I forgot to make a lunch this morning, so I was going to have to beg some food out of Makoto, and I'd have to get to her before Usagi did. Because everyone knew that if Usagi got there first, there wouldn't even be food enough for Makoto left.

"Makoto-chan," I said approaching her as the bell rang.

"You forgot a lunch didn't you?" Makoto said sounding amused

"Of course, I was too distracted this morning,"

"Here, I packed three bentos and my usual lunch, I figured you'd forget it, you were acting pretty weird when we saw you yesterday," Makoto said handing me a wooden bento wrapped in a golden piece of fabric.

"Thank you so much," I told her as I sat down next to her.

"Of course,"

"This fabric is really pretty, can I keep it?" I asked fingering the weave.

"Sure, I don't need it,"

"Thanks,' I replied in a really far off voice. I couldn't tell you when the Lance and the rest of the girls showed up and sat down, nor could I tell you what the conversation was about. I couldn't even tell you if I liked the contents of that bento, nor what Makoto's special treat was. I was caught up with that fabric, I really don't know why.

I think it reminded me of something I had in my last life. I know all during the next several hours I had flashes from my last life. The worst one was during Math, which of course didn't bother me because I hate so it bother me, well except I came out of it screaming. Maybe I should tell you what it was…maybe that would help you understand the whole screaming thing. So here it is:

"_Rose, What are you doing? There is a war going on, even if you're sure that there isn't really one," Elle said tapping my shoulder._

"_There isn't a war, and I'm busy," I told her irritably. _

"_With what? Ever since these people started kidnapping people you've been withdrawn into yourself," Elle said as I stared at my gloves. They were so pretty, golden and soft._

"_I've been working scrying who is doing this. I've been doing it twenty-four/seven. I don't have the time, nor the strength to be on the frontline anymore. Nor do I have the willpower, I hadn't told you yet, but Emma's disappeared, I don't know where she's gone, and I fear she was kidnapped as well," I told my half-sister in an overly quiet voice. I was scared for my older daughter._

"_What have you scryed then?" Elle asked in a slightly nicer voice._

"_I've seen nothing of Emma, and little of our enemy," I looked at my mirror again. It turned white when I tried to scry Emma, there was nothing there of her._

_I heard screaming and jumped to my feet. I ran to my door, which Elle had left open. There I saw huge men running through my palace. I hit several with thin streams of concentrated fire. But eventually several caught me as one of my dizzy spells hit me. They grabbed me and dragged me off._

_I was pulled through my own palace until we reached my audience chamber, where a man sat in my favorite seat. He was big, and burly, and he looked like a brute._

"_So Queen Rose II herself. Aren't I lucky?" The man said in a really deep voice._

"_Of course not, because you know I'm going to kill you," I told him as I let flow a thin stream of fire. It hit him in the middle of the chest. He collapsed forward and I strode through the rest of the palace killing every soldier I saw. As I killed the last I had a vision._

_It wasn't really like me to have visions, so I was shocked by it, which made it all that much more stunning and painful for me._

_The vision was of Elle, she was dying, and she was in the arms of a crying teenage girl. The girl wasn't ugly, but nor was she stunning. She was somewhere around pretty. She had long brown hair, and bright brown eyes. She was wearing a tight blue denim pants, and a light green shirt which hugged her figure. The long hair was pulled back in a single ponytail. _

"_Aunt, Aunt Elle, don't die on me. Please don't, I don't want to lead the armies, please don't leave me," She was sobbing, and there was a battle going on around her. A young man touched the girl's arm, and she looked up. When she looked back Elle was dead. The girl screamed in rage, and pain. Through the entire battlefield the enemy soldiers were frozen into blocks of ice. It looked a bit comical, but I knew it wasn't. I found myself screaming along with the girl._

And of course this is the point when I came to in Math class. The entire class was staring at me, I instantly shut my mouth, and with it the sound stopped. Sensei sent me home.

"What's wrong with you lately?" Corey asked angrily as I stared off into space.

"I don't know. Everything's all my fault, and I don't know how to fix it," I said in my quiet voice. My head was again filled with that vision from the past, the one with Elle dying, I never told Elle about that vision. I know I didn't.

"What's your fault, you're making even less sense than normal," Corey complained.

"Everything," I stressed the word.

"Nothing's your fault, you shouldn't blame yourself for the evil of others," Oh, Corey though I was talking about our enemies, I don't blame myself for their actions, though I feel bad that I befriended Alexis.

"No, not that. The way the Doors open to places that by the nature of existence shouldn't exist, and that that Door would open for anyone who could change. I wonder how many people are stuck there, in that world that shouldn't exist. The only way they could have gotten back was if they managed to enter the Hall of Doors, and I wouldn't even know where to look for it in that world," I said and rested my elbows on my knees and my face in my hands.

"You're such an idiot Megan, at the time you didn't even know any of it was real, none of us did. In fact I think that at the time even the Scouts were just finding out who they were," Corey was trying to assuage my guilt, it wasn't working. I knew my guilt, and she wasn't going to talk me out of it.

I've been wandering around aimlessly through the Juuban Shopping District, and I'm not sure what I was doing. I listened as the devil chattered about how I was responsible for all the bad things in the world, and I was a little disheartened that the angel only disagreed half the time. I was such a stupid idiot. I was such an evil stupid idiot. I wonder how many languages can I call myself stupid in?

Well there's Baka, and Hafarun, and Diputs, and…well I guess that's it Well and English of course. That makes me feel bad, I should be able to say it in more languages. Of course I can't, I'm stupid remember?

Of course that's beside the point.

As I was listening to the devil go on about how the entire war in Iraq was my fault (I have to admit, she was making some really convincing points), I heard some screaming. Of course I did, now I'm going to have to fight something again. I rushed towards it, at least I can do something good. When I was about to round a corner I saw Sixela presiding over a small massacre. I pulled Nadilire out of my pocket.

"Nadilire, you up for some fighting?" I asked quietly. When I felt Nadilrie go warm in my palm, and saw him start to glow I pulled out my henshin wand and called out "Ruby Rose Transformation!"

This time I could see my transformation.

A Rose appeared at my feet, completely open. It closed up around me, then disappeared in a blink, but it left me in a simple white leotard. Pink ribbons surrounded my lower half and turned into a light pink shirt half hanging off me, with white ruffles in the front. It was tied with a yellow ribbon in the front. Another ribbon formed into a slightly off kilter golden sailor collar, which had a pink bow. My arms were surrounded with golden ribbons which turned into fingerless gloves. My legs had tall golden socks and pink low boots. My hair grew out longer and the black tattoo of a rose on my chest was uncovered from under the makeup. The ring was still on my finger. Last of all a pink visor came up over my eyes.

Then I posed. I mean why did I have to pose? I hate that stupid posing.

"Sixela! Aren't you supposed to fight me? Not kill everyone in sight?" I called out when I was done. I'm glad I didn't have a fancy speech, that would have just been too much.

"Of course, I was trying to lure you out. Poor little Rose, a princess without a kingdom," I decided that I hate Sixela more than I hate optimists.

"You can blame Galaxia for that one," I said and reached out. I knew that Nadilire would be in my hand, and he was, but on top of a rod. Oh well I guess no cool princess thing again this time.

"Nadilire Roses!" I called out pointing the wand at Sixela. Sixela was covered in rather pointy roses, which promptly tore her dress to shreds. I turned the wand back on her.

"Nadilire Light!" a rose colored light surrounded her and Sixela screamed.

"Nadilire Death!" Sixela dissolved into dust. I won't have to deal with her for at least the rest of this life. But I feel kind of bad about it, maybe I should have pulled Usagi in, so she could healed her, but that was never my thing. I have never had the strength, or the kindness to heal, instead of kill.

As I stood there watching the dust scatter on the wind the other scouts, Lan, and Tuxedo Mask came running up. But I kept watching the dust.

"Rose? Rose are you alright?" Lan asked concerned. I nodded but I was watching the dust still.

"What do you think happened?" I heard Elle ask someone quietly.

I hadn't wanted to kill Sixela, I really hadn't. In fact I think I would have loved to have healed her, to have Alexis back. But I think Alexis was a front from the very start, she was evil in her last life as well. And for all I know she was evil in the life before that too.

"I don't know," Osseus was the one who answered.

"Sixela," I said quietly my eyes tearing up. I felt myself collapse to my knees and Lan came and held me. I cried on his shoulder. The other girls were talking, but I don't know what they were talking about To tell the truth I don't care; I just killed someone I had thought was my friend. And I couldn't do anything about the people she had killed before I got here either, maybe Sailor Moon will do something, I simply don't have the strength.

"Rose, what happened?" Lan whispered into my ear.

"Sixela…she…she was killing people…" I said in a voice even I could barely hear.

"What happened to her?"

"I killed her,"

They mostly left me alone for awhile. I don't know why, I mean they must have known I needed people around me, I needed people who could reassure me of my sanity, because no matter how many times I say I'm crazy, and that there's no sanity to lose, I know that's not right. I have some sanity, if not much. In fact I really have a lot of sanity, ut I act the way I do, so no one believes that.

I just can't believe that they would leave me alone Even Brian, the most annoying child in the world felt no need to drive me crazy. Why did they leave me alone?


	14. End of Book 1

End Act

They mostly left me alone for awhile. I don't know why, I mean they must have known I needed people around me, I needed people who could reassure me of my sanity, because no matter how many times I say I'm crazy, and that there's no sanity to lose, I know that's not right. I have some sanity, if not much. In fact I really have a lot of sanity, but I act the way I do, so no one believes that.

I just can't believe that they would leave me alone Even Brian, the most annoying child in the world felt no need to drive me crazy. Why did they leave me alone?

On the third day they left me alone I slept all day. I'm not sure why I wasn't in school, I' m pretty sure it was a Wednesday. I had horrible dreams, but also good dreams, memories, and random conversations with the angel and devil.

The worst was that I had _that_ dream a bunch of times. That in itself was bad. The last time I had seen it was during that fight with that monster, the night I met Lan. It keeps repeating, like a broken record, or maybe me listening to a favorite song, except it wasn't good, there wasn't even anything remotely good in it.

The angel was acting considerably more like the devil than ever before. In fact her voice was even a bit huskier, and deeper. She was arguing the devil's points for her. The two of them kept saying that I was right, I had to kill her, and I should have killed all the other people in the area.

The memories were all of battles, and death. I was having memories from my last two lives, and some from what I think was my first life, before I could control my powers, they were the worst. I think in that life I destroyed the entire world. That was even more sobering than killing Sixela.

"Rose, Rose,

"Rose, Rose,

"Shall I ever see thee wed?

"I will marry at thine will sire,

"At thine will, at thine will.

"Ding, Dong,

"Ding Dong,

"Wedding Bells on an April Morn

"Carve your name in a moss covered stone

"In a Moss covered Stone."

I don't know where the voice came from. But it was comforting and soft, like a little girl. She sang solely for me, all through my nightmares and torment. The song was soft and lilting, but I knew the meaning.

The meaning was that a girl was told to marry a man she didn't want to, so she killed herself. I think she might have been smart. Sometimes there are worse things than death.

"Rose, I've to get you. I'll save you, I promise," It was dark as the voice who was singing came back to me.

"Who are you?"

"I'm you of course. I'm you as you should have been I promise I'll always be here for you, I'll always be here,"

"You won't leave me alone?"

"Of course not, Rose. Just come with me,"

"Of course I will,"

**End of Book One, look for Book Two coming soon!**

**Book Two will be written from a different perspective, see if you can guess who!**


End file.
